My personal highlight of being involved in MCSI in the last couple of years is hearing different peoples stories of finding new sites for swifts in Manitoba and sharing their experiences. So far in 2016, 13 new site codes have been issued by Barb, which reflects brilliantly on the endeavours of MCSI volunteers. Each time a new site is reported, there is always a story to tell and this blog uses extracts from emails and a couple of personal accounts to give a impression of how these sites are found.
Site 1 – Portage Avenue, St James – the eagle-eyed spotter
David Wiebe is part of a team monitoring the chimneys around Assiniboine School in St James. He recently sent a report of a new chimney on Portage Avenue which was found thanks to Jake Peters of Osborne Village fame. Here is Davids report:
‘A couple of days ago I looked more closely at the apt block on Portage Ave right beside the Carillon on the east side of it. 1780 Portage. Something Jake Peters had said the last time he was monitoring with us made me curious. And so I noticed upon closer inspection that it has a chimney mostly hidden because of trees. Because of the trees and because it is barely higher than the roof there is almost no spot where the chimney can be seen. So this evening I thought I would look at that spot and see if any swifts went there. Lo and behold at 9:20 I saw one swift go down there, and although I couldn’t actually see it enter the chimney it is the only thing that could have happened. A new site!’
Sites 2 and 3 – the historic anomalies, St Francois Xavier and Lanark Gardens
Some sites have been on the database for years but no one has ever recorded an entry by a Chimney Swift. Marshall Birch has been working on bird stewardship projects with Nature Manitoba and here tells us how he has finally managed to find swifts in some chimneys:
During an outing to visit Grant’s Lake and Delta Marsh IBAs, Tim figured we might as well stop by some potential Swift nesting sites which had yet to be confirmed. St Francois Xavier lies along Highway 26, around 30 km West of Winnipeg. The centrepiece of the town is the stately St. Francois Xavier Parish Church, built in 1900, and sporting and mighty intriguing chimney on the back. It had long been suspected as a Swift site, and we were here to investigate. Some time was spent on lookout (on the hottest day in recent memory), and after being repeatedly teased by Swallows, we decided there wasn’t anything going on and went to check out the oxbow lake before taking off. As we were returning to the car, the tell-tale call of Swifts was heard, and two were spotted above the church. We staked out shady spots to watch, and after about five minutes, I caught one Swift exit the chimney – the very moment Tim looked away to change position, of course. No entrance was seen, and while this amount of time spent in a chimney mid-day is unusual, its not unheard of. On a day that hot, everyone needs a bit of extra time to rest!’
And Marshall again
‘My first Swift search of the season was a successful one. Just South of Corydon, on Lanark Street, is a series of apartment buildings, which have been on the MCSI’s list for some time without any confirmation. What’s interesting about this site is that it encompasses not one but nine buildings, each with its own chimney, and some with two. While I was able to stake out a place in the back lane that provided a view of four chimneys, it became clear why this site hasn’t been successfully monitored. There were certainly Swifts in the area, but even if I had a position from which I could see all the chimneys, there could be an entrance in one in a split second as I glance at another – they’re that darned quick. As time went on and the realization that monitoring this site was really more like monitoring about ten at once, I began to lose hope. Noting that they seemed to be swooping mostly around one end of the area, I changed my position slightly and focused over there. Just as I did this, two Swifts slipped into a chimney in front of me. I’d say that a good deal of luck was at play this evening, though a history of interest in the site was what had led me there in the first place.
Site 4 and 5 – pure luck, the Granite Curling Club and the Pembina Rexall
Usually finding Chimney Swift habitat comes down to a combination of skill, knowledge and hours of work. Occasionally luck becomes the key factor in finding swifts. Here I give an account of finding a new site:
‘Arriving at work one day, Marshall asked whether there are known Chimney Swift sites near Balmoral Avenue as he had spotted 10 Chimney Swifts circling the area the previous evening. There was nothing in the immediate vicinity on the database apart from the new chimneys in Osborne Village. I decided to pop over to the area on my bike. The Granite Curling Club has a rather funky chimney with 5 flues on top. While passing this point, I saw a streamlined black object plunge into one of these flues – a Chimney Swift – that was one lucky chance! On another occasion, I saw a pair of Chimney Swifts plunge into a known site on Roslyn while waiting at the bus stop (thanks again Jake Peters for finding this site in 2015). Luck is sometimes needed in Chimney Swift world.’
And back to Marshall:
‘Luck played a key role in a site spotting a few weeks back while driving down Pembina. There had been suspicion that a chimney atop a Rexall could be inhabited by Swifts, though no sightings had been recorded. While driving by, Tim suggested I take a peek, and lo and behold, a Swift was just passing by the chimney. We immediately pulled over to survey the scene. At first it seemed like not much going on – there appeared to be a couple of Swifts in the area, but they showed little interest in the chimney. We were about to assume they were nesting elsewhere and take off when I spotted a black flash near the chimney in the corner of my eye. We hung around for another few minutes – long enough to witness the Swift reappear out of the chimney and to confirm it was being used. While instances of this sort aren’t that common, it’s amazing how often one can find Swifts if they’ve just got it in their head to keep an ear and eye out. Since getting involved with Swifts I’ve hardly gone a day without seeing or hearing a few somewhere around the city – but maybe I’m just extra lucky.’
Site 6 and 7 – good old fashioned endeavour and sleuthing, William and McDermot
I suspect most Chimney Swift sites over the years have been found thanks to good old fashioned boots on the ground looking up to the skies. Each year many of you are doing just this, heads to the skies. John Hays, a Nature Manitoba member has been doing just that:
‘Friday evening I went back to the area where I had seen swifts that afternoon. I watched the sky and a couple of chimneys from the Parts Source parking lot at Notre Dame and Isabel for more than an hour, about 8:30 till 9:45. I saw no Swifts. Still curious I tried again Saturday evening at Isabel and William and found swifts flying every few minutes. I could not count more than 6 at a time in the air. I watched the chimney on 442 William from about 8:20 till 9:50. At 9:44 I saw 2 swifts enter the chimney and another at 9:45.’
and:
‘Since monitoring the chimney at 442 William I have been dropping by there and two other spots nearby, hoping to see a daytime entry or exit. Yesterday, July 2nd, my time invested payed off. At 4:46 PM after looking at a chimney for about 10 minutes I had an entry and within a minute an exit. I stayed for another 40 minutes but did not see another exit or entry, although swifts were flying by. This happened at the chimney on the northwest corner of the old warehouse at 579 McDermot ave. A clear view of the chimney is had from the corner of Bannatyne and Lydia. This morning I went back at 10:40 AM and had the first entry at 11:23 AM and exit at 11:28. Had to wait till 12:29 PM for the second entry and 12:48 for the exit.’
Sites 8 and 9 – using technology to find Chimney Swifts, Osborne Village
Where possible, I have been using Google Satellite Images and Street view to find information on swift sites. The quality of these images especially in larger cities like Winnipeg and Brandon, is such that they can show whether there is a gaping hole in the top of a chimney or not. This could in theory then be used to point new volunteers to possible monitoring sites. In a few cases this has led to discovery of new sites for swifts. Back to Marshall:
‘I’d been out to investigate a site from the MCSI database in the Osborne Village area one night. While no entrances or exits were seen, it was notable how many Swifts were in the area. This got us thinking that there must be other nest sites in the vicinity. Using Google Earth, Tim scanned aerial images of the neighbourhood and came up with four potential sites – they seemed to be the right size and looked uncapped. Several evenings were spent lurking about back alleys, scoping out chimneys. Of the four, two proved to have no activity, while there were entrances spotted at two of the locations. A 50/50 success rate ain’t bad for guessing sites based on aerial images, and certainly confirms validity for the technique!’
–Tim Poole