The 2nd week of Chimney swift monitoring – Join one of our summer students, Vicky, for a recap of recent monitoring efforts.
Welcome to the 2nd week blog on our Chimney swift monitoring efforts! Yesterday, the 7th of June was World Swift Day. This day was first celebrated in 2019 by 39 countries, where they would introduce and share to the world about swifts. As of 2020, the number of countries that actively created events for swifts increased to 49! I would like to use this chance to thank again, all our volunteers for contributing to the monitoring of swifts in Manitoba. Without volunteers, our database would have nothing to prove the existence of swifts and their dwindling numbers. So, happy belated World Swift Day!
I have been going through all your data entries, and it is exciting to see so many sightings! June 2 was our second MCSI night. As well as our second and third NRMP nights on May 30 and June 3. With it finally warming up, we can expect some swifts in action! We had sightings in Dauphin, Winnipeg, La Broquerie, Portage La Prairie, Carman, St Jean Baptiste, St Francois Xavier, Brandon, Selkirk and Otterburne.
Ron Bazin kept watch over in Otterburne at the Providence College for the first NRMP night with its three chimneys. He saw three swifts fly by on May 26. There were three entries in the big chimney all at separate times, with the first one flying out before the other two swifts entered and remained inside. The 3rd chimney by the bell tower had swifts flying in and out from 8:20 to 9:00, making a total of twelve entries. Coming back on the 30th for the second NRMP night, there were six entries in the small chimney. The large chimney had four swifts all come in around 9:20 to 9:40. There were nine in the air, so one swift seemed to have gone missing. At the bell tower, we had two more entries. During the 3rd NRMP night, two entered the bell tower chimney, six in the large chimney, and seven in the small chimney. Ron also made his way to St Norbert RC Church on the 1st, where there were two entries and to the Fire Hall on 864 Marion on the June 3rd where there were six entries.
As a new student, I went out for my first monitoring on June 1st to 161 Stafford St, where I saw 15 swifts fly by! No entries though. They were headed to the west. The next day for the 2nd MCSI night, I headed to the apartments at 555 Lanark St and spotted my first swift entering the chimney! I was surprised by how smooth they entered. One entered at 8:40 while another did not enter until 9:40.
Our other summer student, Ariel Desrochers, monitored her first chimney on May 26th at the Lothian Block apartments in Wolseley. Unfortunately, no swifts that night. However, she was there on our first watch night to confirm the large number of swifts at our new roost site on 242 River Ave on June 3rd, so all is well!
Blair Reid monitored 261 Youville street on May 30, where Blair caught two swifts making entries in the evening. On June 2nd, two entries were also observed at 690 St. Joseph, with two more flying about in the air.
Amanda was out to the Assiniboine School on the 31st of May. Last MCSI night an unusually low number of swifts were observed, this week was not much different, dispite the much nicer weather. She encountered six swifts flying about and one making an entry into the chimney. It seems like this site has lost its popularity with the swifts! Hopefully, they found a nice chimney elsewhere (Maybe they moved to that new chimney at 242 River Avenue we just recently discovered!).
Adam watched the chimney at Assiniboine Park on the 26th during the day. There were no swifts during his monitoring time. However, on June 2nd, we had Evelien and Allery watching during the day, and had a single entry.
Jo and Betsy monitored the Assiniboine Park site on June 5 for the evening. They had many sightings of swifts, but two entries in total. One at 8:59 and 9:41. Two swifts were calling almost constantly throughout the monitoring period. If you have seen the Zoo Tower, you know that woodpeckers have also used the tower (by creating holes, unfortunately). Jo and Betsy thought that they might have seen scattered feathers near the hole in the side of the chimney, and possibly an entry into the hole by a Pileated Woodpecker. Due to the angle at which they were watching the chimney, it was hard to tell. They were obviously set up for Chimney Swift monitoring, not expecting to need to monitor for Pileated Woodpecker entries into the chimney. We are going to have to wait for someone to confirm more information!
We had Gordon Ogilvie on the evening of June 2nd during the 2nd MCSI night at the Trinity United Church South chimney in Portage La Prairie, where four swifts entered. To add on, there was a special guest, the Common Nighthawk! I have never seen one with my own eyes, but according to allaboutbirds.org, they have this special sound they make when diving towards the ground. With the wind rushing at its wing tips, they make sounds equivalent to a race car! How cool is that.
Luc Blanchette managed to see some swift action this week at the Saint-Jean-Baptiste Church on the 2nd MCSI night with as many as seven flying over and two making an entry. On June 3rd, Luc made his way to Ecole Regionale Saint-Jean-Baptiste, where he got one Chimney Swift entry and a few flying over making calls.
Blaire at St. Nobert Behavioural Health Foundation also had two swifts enter the chimney on the evening of the 2nd. Glad to have so many of volunteers who braved the chilly weather from two weeks ago seeing swifts recently!
Frank and Jacquie Machovec monitored two sites for us this week. On June 2nd at Carman Memorial Hall, three swifts flew to the northwest, and a few could be heard to the east from 8:10 to 8:40. At La Broquerie St Joachim Church on June 3rd for our 3rd NRMP night, five entries were observed in both the small and large chimney in the evening. There were, however, seven flying around during the whole monitoring period. Where did the other two go? Seems like the mystery continues…
At St. Francois Xavier RC Church, we had Mike and Michele Tumber monitoring the chimneys on the 2nd MCSI night. They saw three swifts make an entry, while one more went in and right back out for a 2nd attempt into the chimney, making the total entry of four swifts.
Pam and Bill Lucenkiw had St Mary’s United Church on watch for the 2nd MCSI night and saw one swift making an entrance into the chimney, with three flying around later.
Glennis Lewis was monitoring the Orange Block Chimney in Brandon at 1203 Princess Ave on June 2nd for MCSI night and had 1 swift flying from a distance. The same result was observed for the other chimney at the back of the building.
Rudolf kept watch over the Curtis Hotel and the Brazier house apartments in East Kildonan, Winnipeg on June 2nd. Two entries were observed, each at both locations, and seven could be seen flying from a distance.
Nicole Firlotte went over to the Assiniboine School on June 3rd for the 3rd NRMP night. Nicole saw one swift enter a chimney, and other swifts flying to the north, east and west. It would have been perfect if some flew to the south. We would then have all four directions!
Ariel and Devon, and Leah and Donald were our strike team heading out after an emergency call from Amanda at the end of the day on June 3rd after we had just found out about the new large roost at 424 River Avenue. Leah and Donald watched the east chimney and had two swifts enter for the evening. Ariel and Devon who watched the west chimney on the same night counted 123 swifts! A more recent observation was on the 5th by Linda Pearn, who saw an estimate of 140 swifts enter the west chimney! They just keep coming.
Sandra Hardy went out to the Old Grace Housing Co-op during the evening of the 3rd where swifts were nowhere in sight.
Garry Budyk kept watch over Pro-Tac Roofing’s own roof for Chimney swifts and found two entering around 9:25, and one more at 9:33, with no exits. This may be a sign of a helper swift! It is common in some bird species to have the existence of helpers (or visitors). Helpers are young, non-breeding swifts that help a breeding pair with different tasks. However adult swifts, after breeding, have also been found to become helpers with their past young as well.
We have word from Ken and Jan in Dauphin for the 3rd NRMP night on June 3rd. With their crazy number of swifts last week in Dauphin, site #600 has went from 49+ to at most, ten swifts in the chimney. All three chimneys in Dauphin are occupied now. The swifts are staying out late these nights. Ken and Jan suspect that they may have already begun nest building, but they’ll need day time observations to confirm. They believe that two swifts are using site #600 to nest, while the other eight late comers are just using the chimney for a nightly roost. This is our 4th mystery I believe, what happened to those 49+ swifts? I like that Ken mentions trees as a possible home. It would be neat to find a swift roosting in hollow. Swifts in trees will be hard to find though!
In Selkirk, we have the Selkirk Birders watching the Selkirk Mental Health Centre and Merchants Hotel on the 3rd and 4th of June. At the centre, a staff person stopped to chat with Gerald Machnee, asking what he was doing, and right as he was explaining, a swift flew in the artificial chimney! Its as if the swifts heard him talk about them. In total, three swifts were seen flying around, with that one swift who went inside. The next day, there were two making an entry. The yellow brick chimney had two swifts, and at the Merchant’s Hotel, another two. In another email, Gerald mentioned that Ray and Sybil may have found the disappearing swifts from last week at the apartment on Main St. They made the observation on June 4. The swifts entered just before 10 PM, with seven more coming in, making a total of 9 swifts in the chimney.
That is all for this week folks! I cannot wait to hear more for next week.
– Vicky Tang