Chimney Swifts in the News, and Some Still in the Nest!
GOING GOING GONE!
Happy September! We’ve hit the home stretch of the 2025 swift season.
The swift activity has really dwindled in many communities across the province, but there are still some swifts kicking around. The breeding pair at the Infirmary chimney in Selkirk seem to still be feeding young, with a week to go until the estimated fledging date. The dropping temperatures and decreasing insect availability will certainly present a challenge for these swifts, but anything is possible! We are crossing our fingers that they will succeed.
Friendly reminder to please send in your monitoring reports. Even if you have reports from earlier this summer that you haven’t submitted yet, it’s not too late! We will make sure they get added to our database.
Before we launch into our penultimate monitoring recap, we’ve got a few interesting links to share. Chimney Swifts were featured prominently in the media last week!
Also on Friday, Rudolf Koes was an invited speaker on the phone-in show about birding on CBC Radio Noon. He was asked about Chimney Swifts (and gulls):
Rhonda watched the Carman Memorial Hall on August 26 during the roosting hour and did not see any swifts. Looks like the swifts have officially departed from Carman.
La Broquerie
Frank visited the St Joachim Church in La Broquerie for a roost hour watch on August 30. He caught 2 entries into the large chimney, and 3 entries into the small chimney. A few more details from Frank: “During the monitoring period the birds never circled the church area as they usually do; they just plunged into their chimney from great height.”
Saint-Jean-Baptiste
Luc monitored the Church on August 19 from 8:08pm-9:08pm. He saw 1 entry/exit around 8:23pm, 3 entries around 8:30pm, 1 exit at 8:32pm, 1 exit at 8:40pm, 1 entry at 8:43pm, 1 entry/exit around 8:47pm, 1 entry/exit around 8:50pm, 1 entry/exit around 8:53pm, and 2 entries around 9:00pm (4 swifts in the chimney).
Selkirk
The swifts have departed from most sites at the Selkirk Mental Health Centre, but there is still some activity at two sites.
T01: On August 27, Fred and Nettie monitored T01 from 7:10pm-8:55pm and saw 1 entry at 8:10pm, 1 entry at 8:19pm, and 1 exit at 8:30pm.
Infirmary: On August 26, Patti monitored the Infirmary from 7:42pm-8:53pm. She saw 1 entry/exit around 7:55pm, 1 entry/exit around 8:03pm, 1 entry/exit at 8:08pm, 1 entry/exit at 8:11pm, 2 entries followed by 2 exits around 8:18pm, 1 entry/exit around 8:26pm, 1 entry/exit at 8:28pm, 1 entry/exit around 8:34pm, and 3 entries around 8:40pm. Feeding is ongoing!
A roosting hour watch on Sept 1 revealed a roost count of 2 swifts. We’re thinking that the assumed helper may have left, leaving the breeding pair to try and wrap up their late nesting attempt by themselves.
Wasagaming
Ellie watched the Dragonfly Tearoom on August 21 from 8:15pm-9:15pm and on August 26 from 8:05pm-9:05pm. She saw no activity on both nights.
Winnipeg
Breanne monitored 411 Stradbrook Ave from 7:17pm-8:47pm on August 29. She did not see or hear any swifts.
We’ve reached the last week of August, and soon the swifts will all be headed down south for the winter. But, it’s not over till it’s over! While it seems that swifts have officially departed from many sites (as evidenced by counts of zero swifts during theroosting hour), there are still lots of swifts around. For example, the breeding pair and helper at the Selkirk Mental Health Centre’s Infirmary chimney are still feeding non-brooded young!
As swifts move around and make their way south, swifts may pop up in areas they weren’t regularly seen throughout the spring/summer. If you do notice any groups of swifts, we’d love to hear about it! Please send us an email with the number of swifts, location and time.
Though swift numbers are dwindling, monitoring is still valuable at this time of year. Getting those roosting hour “zero counts” helps us understand when swifts depart from different areas (and how these dynamics change from year to year).
Let’s get into the recap, including the results from our Aug 19 blitz. Thanks again to all of you for your continued help and participation. We are so grateful and very appreciative to have such an incredible volunteer base!
Carman
Rhonda watched the Carman Memorial Hall on August 19 from 8:11pm-9:00pm. She saw 2 entries around 8:36pm. Rhonda also mentioned that she saw some daytime activity at this chimney on the following days (though the amount of daytime use seems lower than in early August).
Lockport
On August 21, Gerald monitored the St. Andrews Lock and Dam Maintenance Compound from 8:15pm-9:07pm and saw no activity.
Lower Fort Garry
Gerald watched the LFG sites on August 19 from 8:08pm-9:10pm. There was no activity at the Fur Loft. At the Men’s House, there was 1 entry/exit at 8:32pm, and 1 entry at 8:33pm.
Gerald returned on August 24. He watched from 8:00pm to 8:55pm and saw no swifts. Seems they have officially departed from Lower Fort Garry.
Portage la Prairie
Jana watched the United Church on August 19 from 8:15pm-9:20pm and saw 2 entries into the South chimney.
Selkirk
The swifts have departed most sites at the Selkirk Mental Health Centre. As of August 21, only 2 of the 6 sites still had swift activity (T01 and the Infirmary chimney). Details below.
T01: Fred and Nettie watched T01 on August 21 from 7:30pm-9:10pm and saw 4 entries during the roosting hour.
T02:Lisa and Monty watched T02 on August 19 from 8:00pm-9:10pm and saw no activity.
T04: Nia and Linda watched T04 on August 19 from 8:04pm-9:10pm and saw no activity.
Infirmary chimney:Dennis and Patti watched the Infirmary chimney on August 19 from 8:00pm-9:08pm. They saw 1 entry/exit at 8:07pm, 1 entry/exit around 8:13pm, 1 entry/exit around 8:27pm, 1 entry/exit around 8:33pm, 1 entry/exit at 8:41pm, and 11 entries between 8:45pm-8:59pm. Looks like this site has shifted to feeding non-brooded young while also hosting roosting swifts.
On August 23, Patti monitored the Infirmary from 7:55pm-9:00pm. She saw 1 entry/exit at 7:59pm, 1 entry/exit at 8:04pm, 1 entry/exit at 8:15pm, 1 entry/exit at 8:18pm, 1 entry/exit at 8:28pm, 1 entry at 8:40pm, 1 entry/exit at 8:43pm, and 2 entries around 8:49pm (3 swifts using the tower – likely a breeding pair + helper). Lots of feeding happening here!!! It seems also that the group of roosting swifts has moved on, leaving only the swifts involved in the breeding attempt.
Yellow Brick chimney:Nia and Linda watched the Yellow Brick chimney on August 19 from 8:04pm-9:10pm and saw no activity.
St. Adolphe
Barb has continued her regular visits to the Tower. On August 18, she was there from 9:15am-10am and saw 3 exits, and 1 entry. The next day (Aug 19), she did see 2 swifts feeding in the area but did not see any entries or exits. On Wednesday (Aug 20), she once again did not see any activity. It seemed like the daytime activity had come to an end, until Thursday (Aug 21) when Barb caught an exit from the tower at 9:36am. She returned on Friday morning and did not see any entries or exits during the 30 minutes she was there. She returned again on Sunday and once again didn’t see any swifts. It seems that the swifts may now have left St Adolphe for the season (though I think it’s safe to say we are all open to some more surprises this year).
St.Norbert
On August 19, Blaire watched the St. Norbert Behavioural Health Foundation from 8:01pm-9:19pm and saw 7 entries between 8:32pm-8:53pm.
Winnipeg
Tim has once again found a new site! On August 20, Tim caught a fast entry into a private residence in the 300block of Maplewood Ave. This chimney was an interesting one. Here is Tim’s description: “It looks like there are three flues with spark arresters covering the outer two flues and the swift entering the central flue (which might or might not have some sort of liner).”
Here is a photo, sent in by Tim:
On August 19, Amy M. checked out the Uptown Lofts (394 Academy Rd) from 9:10am-10:00am and did not see any activity. She then moved to the Assiniboine School (175 Winston Rd). She monitored this site from 10:05am-11:05am and saw 1 entry at 10:20am, 1 exit at 10:23am, 1 entry at 10:36am, and 1 exit at 10:43am. Seems feeding is ongoing at this site.
Jo and Richard watched the Assiniboine Park Zoo tower on August 19 from 7:06pm-8:10pm. They saw up to 6 swifts flying overhead but did not see any entries or exits.
Breanne monitored Ludlow Court (141 River Ave) on August 19 from 7:40pm-9:10pm. Though she heard some chittering to the west, she did not see any swifts.
Rudolf shared with us an interesting sighting he had on the morning of August 20: “About 25 swifts were flying in a loose flock over Kildonan Park, seen from across the river. They were obviously actively feeding and I counted/estimated them several times, always coming up with the tally of 25. Most I have seen in the area in many years.”
That’s it for this week’s recap. Thanks again for monitoring and for sending in your reports!
A quick reminder that our final monitoring blitz is tomorrow, August 19th! Please reach out if you would like some suggestions for sites to monitor. You can also check out our priority site list (included at the end of this blog) or browse through our 2024 summary database and pick a site from there:
At this point, many sites have now fledged while some sites are still feeding young.
There continues to be very exciting and unexpected developments at the Tower in St. Adolphe. Originally, we thought the never-before-seen use of the Tower could be attributed to curious, non-breeding swifts. However, after multiple momentous monitoring sessions this week, it seems that the Tower is hosting a very late nesting attempt AND has become a roost site for non-breeding swifts!!! This is unprecedented. The full rundown of the St. Adolphe Tower happenings can be found in the St. A recap below.
Without further ado, let’s get into it.
Carman
Rhonda has been regularly monitoring the Carman Memorial Hall. On August 5, she watched from 8:38pm-9:45pm and saw 1 entry/exit around 8:42pm, and 1 entry at 8:56pm. On August 6, she watched from 6:10pm-7:10pm and saw 2 entries followed by 2 exits at 6:12pm, 1 entry at 6:34pm, 1 exit at 6:42pm, 1 entry at 6:54pm, 1 exit at 7:00pm, 1 entry at 7:02pm, and 1 exit at 7:08pm. On August 9, she monitored from 3:00pm-4:18pm and saw 2 entries around 3:10pm, 1 exit at 3:13pm, 1 exit at 3:33pm, 1 entry at 3:44pm, 1 entry at 4:04pm, 1 exit at 4:05pm and 1 exit at 4:13pm.
Lockport
On August 15, Gerald watched the St Andrews Lock and Dam Maintenance Compound from 8:12pm-9:20pm. He saw 1 entry/exit around 8:40pm and 1 entry at 8:56pm at the South chimney.
Portage la Prairie
On August 11, Jana monitored the United Church (15 Tupper St. S) from 8:33pm-9:18pm. Throughout the monitoring session, she saw 7 swifts enter the South chimney.
Jana and Gordon checked out a few sites on the evening of August 13. They started out at the former Correctional Centre (329 Duke Ave) from 8:25pm-9:05pm and saw no activity at all. Jana then moved go the United Church and was joined shortly after by Gordon. They saw 9 entries into the South chimney.
Selkirk
T01: Cam watched T01 from 9:46am-10:46am on August 11 and saw 1 entry at 9:46am, 1 entry/exit at 10:06am, and 1 entry/exit around 10:31am. Fred and Nettie watched T01 from 7:20pm-9:20pm on August 13 and saw 1 entry at 9:05pm.
T02: On August 15, Dennis and Patti watched T02 from 7:56pm-9:15pm. They saw 1 entry at 8:59pm and 1 exit at 9:10pm.
T03: Dennis and Patti watched T03 from 8:18pm-9:21pm on August 13 and saw no activity.
T04: Cam watched T02 from 10:52am-11:52am on August 11 and saw no entries or exits. Nia and Linda watched T04 on August 11 from 8:19pm-9:26pm and saw 2 entries at 9:21pm.
Yellow Brick chimney: On August 11, Cam monitored this site from 10:52am-11:52am and saw 1 exit at 11:10am. He mentions there may have been a few more exits but only 1 was confirmed.On August 13,Nia and Linda watched the chimney from 8:19pm-9:26pm and saw 4 entries.
Infirmary chimney: On August 13, Dennis and Patti watched this chimney from 8:18pm-9:21pm.They saw 1 entry at 8:31pm, 2 exits at 8:32pm, 1 entry/exit around 8:42pm, 1 entry/exit around 8:43pm, 1 entry/exit around 8:52pm, 15 entries between 8:59pm-9:14pm, and 1 exit at 9:20pm. That’s up to 15 swifts inside the chimney and 14 swifts inside at the end of the roosting hour. Seems like feeding is ongoing at this site, on top of hosting many roosting swifts!
St. Adolphe
There is LOTS to report on here. Before we launch into the very exciting developments at the Tower, we’ll do a quick recap of the other St. A sites. The SE Club Amical swifts officially fledged on August 11! Woohoo. On August 13, Barb caught 2 of the SE Club Amical fledglings exit the NE Club Amical chimney, so they are doing a bit of exploring. On August 13, there was no daytime entries/exits at the Brodeur Bros./Daycare site and the Main St site. The Main St chimney hasn’t been regularly monitored this season, so accessing the clean-out in the fall will reveal whether the nesting attempt at this site was successful or not.
Now let’s get into the extra exciting stuff – the Church and the Tower! These sites can now be monitored from the same vantage point, thanks to some precise tree trimming by Rob and Barb.
On August 12, Lewis and Frank took a trip down to St. Adolphe to monitor the Church and the Tower. Lewis was stationed at the Church while Frank was stationed at the Tower, and they monitored their respective sites from 7:45pm-9:20pm. At the Church, Lewis saw 10 entries which took place between 8:42pm-9:11pm. At the Tower, Frank saw 2 entries around 7:55pm, 1 entry/exit around 8:12pm, 1 entry/exit around 8:17pm, 1 entry at 8:31pm, 1 entry at 8:40pm, 2 entries at 8:55pm followed by 2 exits at 8:57pm, and 2 final entries around 9:04pm. That’s 6 swifts inside the tower! It’s also worth noting that there were 3 swifts using the tower during “daytime” hours (earlier than 30 minutes before sunset) – this is very interesting!
There were lots of eyes on the Tower the next morning (August 13). Barb arrived around 10:08am, and Frank and Jacquie arrived around 10:30am. They switched off on monitoring duties. Between the three of them, the tower was monitored from about 10:08am-12:20pm. There was 1 entry at 10:09am followed by 1 exit at 10:10am seen by Barb, and 1 exit at 11:12am seen by Frank and Jacquie.
On August 14, Barb monitored the Tower from 9:15am-10:15am. She saw 3 consecutive exits around 9:17am, 1 entry at 9:30am, 1 entry/exit around 9:36am, 1 entry/exit at 9:53am, 1 entry at 9:55am, 1 exit at 9:58am, 1 entry at 10:04am and 1 entry at 10:13am. Importantly, Barb noticed one of the swift collecting twigs, a.k.a. nest building behaviour!
On August 16, Tim and Linnea monitored the Church and the Tower from 8:00pm-9:14pm. At the Church, there were 3 entries between 8:54pm-9:01pm. At the Tower, there was 1 entry/exit around 8:09pm, 1 entry at 8:28pm, 1 entry at 8:38pm, 1 entry/exit around 8:48pm, and 3 entries between 8:54pm-9:03pm (5 swifts inside the tower at the end of the roosting hour). Tim notes that there were 15 swifts flying overhead at 8:40pm while 2 swifts were inside the tower, so there were at least 17 swifts in the area.
Daytime use continued August 17, when Barb checked out the Tower during the afternoon and saw 2 swifts enter followed by 1 exit several minutes later.
So, what is going on here??? Well, the Tower seems to have become a site of interest for breeding swifts AND non-breeding, roosting swifts. The consistent daytime activity by 3 swifts (likely a breeding pair + a helper) combined with the twig collecting observed by Barb strongly suggests that a very very late season nesting attempt is underway here… Barb theorizes that “the interest in The Tower by a breeding oriented pair may have been the draw for others from the “from away” group to join in for roosting”. We won’t know for sure what is going on inside that Tower until we access the clean-out later in the fall. Until then, we will have to patiently wait while we continue to take our best guesses!
Winnipeg
John watched the Moorgate Apartments (2187 Portage Ave) from 8:12pm-9:26pm on August 10. He saw up to 8 swifts flying within 50 metres of the chimney throughout the session, and saw 2 swifts enter around 9:02pm. John mentioned that he lost sight of the chimney between 8:50pm-9:00pm while he spoke with a resident from the building, so it is possible there were other entries that were missed.
On August 10, Blair monitored Fernwood Apartments (314 St Anne’s Rd) from 8:19pm-9:12pm and saw no swift activity. On August 13, Blair monitored Niakwa Park Plaza (1310 Archibald St) from 8:24pm-9:20pm and saw 5 entries between 8:39pm-9:04pm. Blair suspects these were 2 adults and 1-3 fledglings. On August 14, Blair monitored Riverside Billiards (531 St Mary’s Rd) from 1:04pm-2:04pm and saw no swift activity. Later that day, he monitored Springs Christian Academy (261 Youville St) from 8:08pm-9:18pm and saw 5 entries between 8:39pm-9:04pm. Blair suspects these were 2 adults and 3 fledglings, based on the variety in entry styles.
Amy and Matt monitored the St. Avila School (633 Patricia Ave) on the morning of August 12. They saw 8 swifts flying overhead but did not see any entries or exits.
Breanne monitored River Manor Apartments (424 River Ave) from 7:51pm-9:31pm on August 13, and saw groups of swifts flying in the area but did not see any entries into the chimney.
Alyssa monitored the Canadian Mennonite University (CMU) chimney on August 13 from 8:19pm-9:19pm and saw 2 entries at 8:21pm followed by 1 exit at 8:26pm.
We’re back with another monitoring recap. Thank you so much to all you incredible volunteers for your continued support and contributions, including answering our spontaneous monitoring call-out last week! We can’t say it enough – your dedication is what makes this program so special and we could not do this without you!
Our next monitoring blitz Tuesday, August 19th. You can monitor one of your usual sites, pick a site from our priority site list, or any other site from our database. The full site list can be found in our summary database, at the following link: https://www.mbchimneyswift.com/Documents/2024_2021_database.pdf
If you aren’t free on August 19, no problem! As always, you can monitor on another day that works for you. All data is helpful, and contributes to our database.
Carman
Rhonda has continued to keep an eye on the swifts in Carman. On July 17, she saw lots of feeding activity while on July 23, there was no daytime activity (which she believes might have corresponded to the site fledging).
La Broquerie
Amy M. and I took a trip down to La Broquerie on August 5 to monitor the two chimneys at the St. Joachim Parish Church. We watched the chimneys for just over an hour (9:28-10:36am) and saw lots of action! At the small chimney, we saw 1 entry at 9:36am, 1 exit at 9:40am, 1 entry at 10:00am, and 1 exit at 10:06am. At the large chimney, we saw 4 exits at 9:40am, 1 exit at 9:41am, 2 entries at 10:08am, 2 exits at 10:11am, and 1 entry at 10:16am. Up to 6 swifts were accounted for.
Lockport
On August 8, Gerald monitored the St Andrews Lock and Dam Maintenance Compound from 8:15pm-9:35pm. At the South chimney, he saw 1 exit at 8:41pm, 2 entries and 2 exits at 8:59pm, 1 entry/exit at 9:03pm followed by another entry/exit around 9:04pm, 2 entries around 9:20pm and 1 exit at 9:23pm. Some thoughts from Barb: “Given the short duration-in and between visit intervals, I wonder if you have some popcorn behaviour by fledglings…perhaps practicing the all important landings via touch ‘n’ go swift style entries/exits. We never get the satisfaction of knowing exactly which swift pops up after an entry.”
Lower Fort Garry
Gerald monitored the LFG sites on August 10 from 8:17pm-9:25pm. At the Fur Loft, he saw 1 entry at 8:29pm, 1 exit at 8:32pm, 1 entry at 8:43pm and 1 entry at 9:01pm. At the Men’s House, he saw 1 entry/exit at 8:20pm, 1 entry/exit at 8:34pm, and 2 entries around 8:54pm.
Otterburne
On August 5, Amy M. and I monitored the three chimneys at Providence University College from 11:27am-12:32pm. We counted about 15 swifts flying around the Providence College campus and saw lots of action at chimney 551 (the “large” chimney, and the middle one when looking at the chimneys from the main parking lot). During the hour we were there, we saw 10 entries and 9 exits with up to 3 swifts in the chimney at once. Nice to see so much swift activity! It seems that the foraging conditions were quite good that day, given the smoke-free day and on and off rain.
A Chimney Swift exiting chimney 551 at Providence College. Photo: Marissa Berard.
Portage la Prairie
Joel reports seeing at least 19 swifts flying around Dufferin Ave W on August 5th. On August 6, Jana and Gordon monitored the United Church from 8:28pm-9:38pm. At the South chimney, they saw 1 entry/exit at 8:29pm, 1 entry/exit around 8:40pm, 1 entry/exit at 9:07pm, 1 entry/exit around 9:08pm, 1 entry/exit around 9:11pm, and 3 entries between 9:21pm-9:29pm. The next day on August 7, Jana returned to the United Church and monitored from 12:19pm-12:55pm. She saw up to 18 swifts flying but did not see any entries or exits at the chimney.
Selkirk
T01: On August 7, Fred and Nettie watched T01 from 7:30pm-9:30pm and saw 1 exit at 7:40pm, 1 entry/exit around 7:42pm, 2 entries around 7:58pm, 1 exit at 8:01pm, 1 entry at 8:12pm,1 possible exit at 8:17pm, and 2 entries around 8:48pm. We believe this site fledged last week.
T02: On August 10, Dennis and Pattie monitored T02 from 8:20pm-9:26pm and saw 1 entry at 8:46pm, 9 entries from 9:06pm-9:16pm and 2 exits at 9:19pm (up to 10 swifts inside the tower but only 8 in at the end of the roosting hour). We think this site also fledged last week.
T03: On August 7,Dennis and Pattie monitored T03 from 8:31pm-9:30pm and saw 1 entry at 9:20pm. We suspect this nest failed earlier in July.
T04: On August 7, Nia and Linda monitored T04 from 8:45pm-9:34pm and saw 1 entry at 9:15pm. This site has been hard to decipher but it does seem that any nesting attempt here has failed.
Infirmary chimney: On August 7, Dennis and Pattie monitored the Infirmary chimney from 8:31pm-9:30pm and saw 1 exit at 8:59pm, and 10 entries between 9:11pm-9:17pm. It still seems possible that this site is hosting a late nesting attempt combined with being a roost site for other swifts.
Yellow Brick chimney: On August 7, Linda and Nia monitored the Yellow Brick chimney from 8:39pm-9:34pm and saw 3 entries from 9:16pm-9:19pm.We still aren’t sure what is going on at this site.
St. Adolphe
As you may recall from our last blog post, Barb caught two swifts entering and exiting the artificial tower in St. Adolphe on July 29 (the first known use of this tower in its 17 years of existence). On August 10, Tim was made a quick stop at the tower while in the area and caught an exit at 2:54pm! Barb returned to the tower on August 11. She watched from 9:40am-10:05am, and saw 1 entry at 9:54am and 1 exit at 10:02am. Very interesting…. Could there be a nesting attempt at this tower?! We are SO excited to take a peek inside that tower this fall once the swifts are gone, to see if there is a nest or any other evidence of nesting. Until then, we will have to be patient and take our best guesses!
Barb has also continued to keep a close eye on the SE Club Amical swifts, who were on track to fledge sometime between today and Wednesday. This morning (August 11), she monitored the chimney from 9:02am-9:37am, and saw 3 consecutive exits at 9:17am, 1 fast entry at 9:23am, and 1 fast exit at 9:30am. Barb’s words: “Based on the consecutive exits and only activity noted recently by a pair of adults, plus the longer duration-in interval, I am going with nominal fledging!” Woohoo!
Winnipeg
Tim has found a new site in Winnipeg! While in the area, he saw an entry/exit around 6:48pm at the St. Edward the Confessor Church (836 Arlington St). Nice one, Tim!
On July 28, Tim caught 1 entry at 1:08pm into the Mount Royal Apartments (2265 Portage Ave).
On August 6, Breanne monitored the roost chimney at 424 River Ave from 8:01pm-10:01pm on August 6 and though she saw groups of up to 27 swifts flying near the chimney, there were no entries.
On August 7, Frank monitored the Niakwa Manor (185 Fernwood Ave) which was on our priority site list. He watched from 7:55pm-9:25pm and saw 3 entries between 8:24pm-8:46pm, so we can now cross that site off our list. Thanks Frank!
On August 10, Garry watched 712 Watt St from 2:03pm-3:05pm. There were no entries or exits at the chimney, but he saw 4 swifts near the chimney. He was able to see that one was a moulting adult, and two of them were “crispy-plumaged” (likely recently fledged young).
Blair has visited many St Boniface sites over the past few weeks. On August 2, he monitored 188 St. Mary’s Rd from 2:12pm-2:42pm and saw no swift activity (though he notes there was a Merlin in the area). Also on August 2, he monitored Springs Christian Academy (261 Youville St) from 1:47pm-2:06pm and saw 1 entry at 2:03pm. He returned to this site on August 3 from 8:30pm-9:38pm and saw 2 entries at 9:13pm. On August 2, he monitored 690 St. Joseph (Kaljieb Electrics) from 1:05pm-1:35pm and saw 1 entry/exit at 1:13pm and 1 exit at 1:24pm. He returned to this site on August 5 from 8:25pm-9:34pm and saw 1 entry/exit around 8:28pm, and 1 entry at 8:56pm. On August 7, he monitored Riverside Billiards (531 St Mary’s Rd) from 8:32pm-9:17pm and saw 1 entry/exit around 8:36pm, and 2 entries around 9:05pm. On August 8, he monitored the Arundel Apartments (790 Elizabeth Rd) from 8:32pm-9:29pm and saw one swift fly-over at 9:12pm but no entries or exits.
This year has been a very strange one in terms of swift activity. Barb and Tim are speculating that the consistent smoke paired with dry conditions have resulted in poor foraging conditions for the swifts. The chances of a successful nesting attempt are a lot lower when the adults are struggling to catch enough food to feed the young. These widespread difficult conditions (and related nest failures) might be resulting in the early formation of premigratory groupings. We’ve gotten several reports of groups of swifts being spotted in areas they haven’t been regularly seen in so far this spring/summer. Things are shifting!
Though our official August monitoring blitz is scheduled for Tuesday, August 19th, I’d like to put out a monitoring call out for this week (Aug 4-8). Basically, if you have time to squeeze in a monitoring session or two at any point this week, we’d love to know what you see! At this point, most sites with an active nesting attempt will be feeding young or will have fledglings, so it’s a really good time to check for activity before most swifts begin to depart later in August. Daytime and roost hour monitoring are both valuable, depending on what works best for you. Both provide important clues to understanding the MB swift situation puzzle.
St Adolphe tower in 2020
Before we launch into our monitoring recap, I want to share a very exciting and unexpected event from this past week. As you may know, we have several artificial towers for Chimney Swifts in Manitoba. The towers we talk about most often are the four towers at the Selkirk Mental Health Centre (SMHC) and the tower at the Assiniboine Park Zoo (APZ), all of which have been very successful. What we don’t talk about as often, are the older towers that were built between 2008 and 2013. These towers were the first attempt at installing artificial towers in Manitoba, and they were based on a design by Kyle & Kyle used in the southern United States. Unfortunately, no swifts were observed using these towers, so a few years later a group of experts got together and created a new tower design better suited to Manitoba’s climate (which is the design used for the newer towers at the SMHC and APZ). There’s a lot more info on the towers on this page of our website: https://www.mbchimneyswift.com/chimney-swift-towers/
ANYWAYS, here’s the big reveal… This week, for the first time since it was built 17 years ago, Barb saw swifts use the artificial tower in St. Adolphe!!! Extremely unexpected. The full story is in the St. Adolphe recap below.
Time for our monitoring recap.
Lockport
On August 1, Gerald watched the chimneys on the St Andrews Lock and Dam Maintenance Compound from 8:20pm-9:40pm. At the South chimney, he saw 1 exit at 8:38pm, 1 entry at 9:11pm, 1 exit at 9:13pm, and 1 entry at 9:23pm.
Lower Fort Garry
Gerald monitored the LFG sites on July 28, from 8:17pm-9:40pm. At the Fur Loft, he saw 1 entry/exit around 8:23pm, 1 entry at 9:05pm and 1 entry at 9:13pm. At the Men’s House, he saw 1 entry at 8:24pm, 1 exit at 8:28pm, 1 entry at 8:29pm, 1 entry/exit at 8:38pm, 1 entry at 8:44pm, 1 entry/exit around 8:50pm, and 2 entries around 9:04pm (4 swifts roosting in the chimney).
Portage la Prairie
On July 23, Gordon and Jana watched the Rufus Prince Building from 9:02pm-9:53pm. They saw lots of activity at the middle chimney: 1 exit at 9:24pm, 1 entry at 9:32pm, 1 exit at 9:35pm, 5 entries between 9:36pm-9:42pm, and 1 exit at 9:43pm (up to 5 swifts in the chimney but only 4 in at the end of the roosting hour). There was no activity seen in the other two chimneys on the building.
Selkirk
Winona monitored the apartment building at 367 Main St on July 28 from 8:35pm-9:35pm and saw no swift activity. On July 30, Winona monitored the Merchant’s Hotel from 8:30pm-9:30pm and saw no swift activity.
Here’s the breakdown of the recent observations at the Selkirk Mental Health Centre sites.
T01: On July 30, the MB Wildlife Branch students monitored this site during the day and didn’t see any activity. However, on July 31, Fred and Nettie monitored T01 from 7:50pm-9:45pm. They saw 1 entry at 8:12pm. 1 entry/exit around 8:25pm, 2 entries at 8:39pm, 2 exits at 8:40pm, 1 entry at 9:02pm, and 3 more entries between 9:20pm-9:35pm (5 swifts roosting in the tower). It seems that this site has likely fledged, woohoo!
T02: Bonnie and Gwen monitored T02 on July 29 from 8:14pm-9:45pm and saw 1 entry/exit around 8:14pm, 1 entry/exit around 8:16pm, 2 entries around 8:21pm, 1 exit at 8:34pm, 2 entries around 8:40pm, 1 exit at 8:45pm, 1entry/exit followed by another entry/exit around 8:46pm, and 4 entries from 9:06pm-9:36pm (6 swifts roosting in the tower). It seems that this site has also likely fledged!!! Also, we think this site has had a helper which likely contributed to its success.
T03: On July 30, Dennis and Pattie monitored T03 from 8:24pm-9:42pm and saw 5 entries between 9:22pm-9:29pm. We suspect this nest failed earlier in July.
T04: On July 28, Tim monitored T04 from 8:25pm-9:45pm and saw 1 entry at 9:29pm and 1 entry at 9:41pm. On July 29, Winona monitored T04 from 8:30pm-9:40pm and saw 3 entries at 9:34pm. There was no activity at this site during a daytime monitoring session on July 30 done by the MB Wildlife Branch students. On August 1, Nia and Linda watched T04 from 8:45pm-9:45pm and saw 2 entries around 9:31pm. Hard to say for sure whether this nesting attempt has failed.
Infirmary chimney: Dennis and Pattie monitored the Infirmary on July 30 from 8:24pm-9:42pm and saw 1 entry at 8:35pm, 1 exit at 8:51pm, and 7 entries between 9:00pm-9:31pm. Last week, we wondered if this chimney might be hosting a late nesting attempt (in addition to being a roost site for other swifts). The daytime entry/exit combined with the high roosting count seen this week supports this idea.
Yellow Brick chimney: This chimney has been a confusing one this year. There hasn’t been a clear indication that a nesting attempt was initiated here. During a daytime visit on July 30, the MB Wildlife Branch students did see 3 exits. On August 1, Nia watched this chimney from 8:45pm-9:45pm and saw 3 entries during the roosting hour – who knows what the swifts are doing here!
Southport
Gordon and Jana watched the Mynarski House (230 Centennaire Drive) on July 31 from 8:35pm-9:45pm. They saw 1 entry/exit around 8:47pm, 1 entry/exit around 9:07pm, and 2 final entries (at 9:13pm and 9:23pm). Looks like there is an active nesting attempt ongoing at this site.
St. Adolphe
As mentioned in this week’s intro, Barb had quite the unexpected observation on July 29, when she caught a swift enter the artificial tower in St. Adolphe for the first time ever. In Barb’s words, here’s how it went down:
“Driving in the south arm of the U shaped driveway which leads to the Church Tower area/cemetery field, I saw a low flying swift over The Tower. The swift had flown by from N to S, then it circled to the east (field side) and approached low ‘n’ slow again. At 10:37:52 it dropped in! Wow! The FIRST OBSERVATION OF CHSW USE OF THE ST A TOWER!!!
So with eyes glued to the rim, I extracted the hot ‘n’ smoked out swift questing pup from the back seat and set up under a Japanese Maple shrub north of the interpretive sign. At 10:54:52 a very fast flyover of the rim took place by 1 swift; it disappeared through the cleft of two mature willows to the south. At 10:55:05, a swift approached low from the north, flared its wings over the rim & dropped in. More draining of my gray matter! Most importantly, at 10:56:00 and at 10:56:02 1 swift departed.
So why after 17 years do these 2 swifts decide to make an entry/exit on a smoke infused morning when no local feeding was seen otherwise? Queue the music “Who are you? WHO WHO WHO WHO? ‘Cause I really wanna know”!”
As Tim put it: “The question is of course, one off from migratory swifts moving through or something more?” Barb hasn’t seen any other entries or exits at the tower since, so the most likely explanation is that the two swifts she saw using the tower were part of the “restless premigratory moment” she has been witnessing in St. Adolphe. Lots of swifts checking out different chimneys and popping out, without being linked to an active nesting attempt.
Otherwise, the nesting attempt at the SE Club Amical is still active. On Monday August 4, Barb reports: “Today is Day 21 for the SE Club juvies so they should be on the wall now…about 7 more sleeps to go before fledging!”
Winnipeg
On July 29, Amy M. did a daytime monitoring session at the Essex House apartment building (2415 Portage Ave) and did not see any activity. She then checked out the Foodfare in St. James (at 2285 Portage Ave) and saw an exit at 10:50am. This site was on our priority site list so we can now cross it off. Great news!
Graham and Alyssa monitored the CMU chimney on July 30 from 9:27am-10:27am and saw zero swift activity. Alyssa returned to do another monitoring session at this site on July 31 from 8:41pm-9:41pm. There were no entries or exits seen during the roosting hour, though two swifts were spotted flying overhead including an approach by one of the swifts who seemed to check out the chimney before flying away to rejoin the second swift.
On July 29, Breanne monitored the Granite Curling Club from 8:14pm-9:44pm. She saw up to 15 swifts flying in the area throughout the evening. She saw 2 entries into the Granite Curling Club chimney (one at 9:10pm and one at 9:26pm).
On July 30, Blair monitored the Fire Hall at 864 Marion St from 8:42pm-9:43pm and saw no activity. On July 31, he monitored Niakwa Park Plaza (1310 Archibald St) from 8:42pm-9:15pm and saw 1 exit at 8:44pm, 1 entry at 8:50pm, and 1 entry at 9:03pm.
John monitored the Moorgate Apartments (2187 Portage Ave) on July 31 from 4:34pm-5:34pm and saw 1 entry at 5:10pm.
On July 31, Katharine was in the Grant Park Mall Shopping Centre parking lot, when she happened to catch an entry into the Grant Wilton Apartments (1055 Grant Ave) at 6:08pm followed by an exit at 6:10pm. Great to know this site is in use this year.
August is just around the corner, which means it’s officially time to keep an eye out for fledglings! The young typically fledge 28-30 days after hatching. In Manitoba, this typically falls sometime during the end of July or first week of August. It can be tough to distinguish adults from fledglings, but there are some useful clues we can look for. Here are a few tips, taken from past blog post by Barb Stewart:
“For monitors in Manitoba, moult characteristics become an important way to distinguish fledglings from adults. Most fledging takes place toward the end of July and into the first week of August, and it is useful to identify juveniles to help estimate nesting success. The flight of newly fledged chimney swifts is characterized by: flying at low altitudes, rapid wing beats for slow air speed, large banking turns, and, occasionally, difficult entries to chimneys (yes, they do miss the opening and tumble down the outside face!). However, within several days post-fledging, young swifts are proficient fliers and they are not easy to distinguish from adults based on flight competency alone. So how do you distinguish juveniles vs. adults? The best way is to look for evidence of moulting on the trailing wing margins. Juveniles will have intact margins while adults will have discontinuities and gaps due to worn and missing feathers.” Full post here:https://www.mbchimneyswift.com/july-update-field-identification-of-adult-chimney-swifts-in-the-summer-range/
Another thing to look for is a change in the levels of daytime activity, combined with an increase in the number of swifts that enter the chimney during the roost hour (because the fledglings are now also leaving the chimney during the day and entering it to roost). That being said, it can be hard to know if an increase in roosting numbers is due to fledglings, or due to the arrival of early-dispersing adult swifts that have left their summer sites and are beginning to form pre-migratory groupings.
As is often the case with swift watching, sometimes the clues are easy to interpret, and sometimes all we can do is take a wild guess at what might be happening…
Time for another round of monitoring updates, including the confirmation of another priority site in Winnipeg – woohoo!
Carman
On July 16, Rhonda checked out the Memorial Hall from 7pm-8pm and saw no activity. The next night (July 17), she had better luck with 1 entry at 7:48pm followed by 1 exit at 7:51pm.
La Broquerie
On July 24, Frank took a trip down to La Broquerie to monitor the chimneys at the Saint-Joachim Parish Church. He watched from 8:25pm-10:05pm. At the large chimney, he saw 1 exit at 8:39pm, 2 entries around 8:47pm, and 1 exit at 9:56pm. At the small chimney, he saw 1 entry/exit around 8:48pm, and 2 entries around 9:28pm.
Lockport
Gerald watched the chimneys at the St Andrews Lock and Dam Maintenance Compound on July 25 from 8:25pm-9:50pm. At the South chimney, he saw 1 entry/exit around 8:32pm, 2 exits at 8:41pm, 1 entry at 9:01pm, 1 entry at 9:07pm, 2 exits around 9:13pm, and 2 entries at 9:33pm (up to 3 swifts using the chimney but only 2 swifts in at the end of the roosting hour). There was no activity at the North chimney.
Morden
Marvin monitored Lucky’s Restaurant on July 24 from 6:56pm-7:36pm. He saw 1 exit at 7:04pm, and 1 entry/exit around 7:18pm. Marvin also quickly stopped by the next day around noon, and saw 1 entry during the 3 minutes he was there.
Selkirk
T01: On July 23, Fred and Nettie monitored T01 from 8:00pm-9:55pm and saw 1 exit at 8:20pm, 1 entry/exit around 8:30pm, 1 entry/exit around 8:43pm, 2 entries around 8:48pm followed by a exit at 8:50pm, 1 entry/exit around 8:59pm, 2 entries at 9:15pm followed by 1 exit at 9:16pm and 1 exit at 9:19pm, 1 entry/exit around 9:24pm, and 1 entry at 9:40pm (up to 3 swifts using the tower but 2 swifts in at the end of the roosting hour). On July 25, Cam monitored T01 from 10:33am-11:33am and saw 1 entry/exit at 11:09am. Despite the slower monitoring session on July 25, feeding is likely ongoing at this site.
T02: On July 24, Dennis and Pattie watched T02 from 8:37pm-9:52pm and saw 1 entry/exit at 8:37pm, 1 exit at 8:38pm, 1 entry at 8:42pm, 1 exit at 8:47pm, 3 entries at 8:52pm, 3 exits at 8:54pm, 1 entry at 9:09pm, 1 exit at 9:14pm, 1 entry at 9:16pm, 1 exit at 9:19pm, and 4 entries between 9:36pm-9:43pm (4 swifts roosting in the tower). It seems that feeding is ongoing at this site as well.
T03: On July 23, Dennis and Pattie watched T03 from 8:38pm-9:52pm and saw 4 entries from 9:28pm-9:32pm, 1 exit at 9:40pm, and 1 entry at 9:40pm (4 swifts roosting in the tower).
T04: On July 25, Cam watched T04 from 11:39am-12:39pm and saw no entries or exits at either site.
Yellow Brick chimney: On July 24, Nia watched the Yellow Brick chimney from 8:35pm-9:50pm and saw 4 entries around 9:39pm. On July 25, Cam watched the Yellow Brick chimney from 11:39am-12:39pm and saw no entries or exits at either site.
Infirmary chimney: Dennis and Pattie watched the Infirmary chimney on July 23 from 8:38pm-9:52pm and saw 1 exit at 9:06pm, followed by 9 entries between 9:13pm-9:45pm. It seems possible that there is late incubation ongoing at this site.
St. Adolphe
Barb caught an exit at the SE Club Amical chimney on the morning of July 25, confirming that the nesting attempt at this site is still ongoing.
Winnipeg
On the night of the blitz (July 16), Jo and Betsy monitored the Assiniboine Park Zoo Tower from 8:04pm-9:45pm. They saw lots of activity – 1 entry at 8:10pm, 2 exits at 8:12pm, 2 entries around 8:27pm, 1 exit at 8:30pm, 1 exit at 8:46pm, 1 entry at 8:47pm, 1 exit at 8:53pm, 1 entry at 9:01pm, 1 entry/exit around 9:08pm, 1 exit at 9:16pm, 1 entry/exit around 9:21pm, 1 entry/exit around 9:27pm, 1 entry/exit around 9:31pm, and 2 entries around 9:39pm (2 swifts using the tower and inside at the end of the roosting hour). Seems like this could be feeding non-brooded young.
Paul monitored the CMU chimney on July 23 from 2:46pm-3:16pm. There were no entries or exits during the 40 minutes he was there. He saw up to 4 swifts in the area, and on a few occasions a swift would dive at the chimney but not enter the chimney (a behaviour we’ve been seeing at a few other chimneys in recent weeks). John monitored this site on July 27 from 5:30pm-6:30pm and saw no swift activity at all. Paul returned to this chimney again on July 27 from 8:47pm-9:47pm and also saw no swift activity at all.
Breanne has continued her weekly monitoring of the Maryland Foodfare chimney. On July 9, she monitored from 8:36pm-10:16pm and saw 1 entry/exit around 9:03pm. She mentions that she continued to hear chittering as it was getting very difficult to see near the end of session, so it’s possible she missed entries or that swifts entered late. On July 16, Breanne watched from 8:30pm-10:00pm and saw 2 entries at 9:55pm. On July 23, she watched from 8:22pm-10:10pm and saw 1 entry at 9:40pm.
On July 28, Amy M. monitored the Nordale School (99 Birchdale Ave) and saw 1 entry at 5:17pm, and 1 exit at 5:27pm. This was a priority site, so we can now cross it off our list!
Thank you so much to all of you who have monitored over the past week! We’ve received many reports from the monitoring blitz on July 16 as well as the days surrounding the blitz. Your reports are so valuable and provide really great insight into the current status of sites across the province. Most nesting swifts have now transitioned to feeding non-brooded young, characterized by more frequent feeding exchanges (usually 3-4 times per hour). Some swifts seem to still be incubating – hopefully these eggs hatch ASAP!
The high levels of activity at this point in the nesting season mean it’s a fantastic time to monitor and check for site use. The blitz dates act as a push to see what’s going on chimney-side at different times throughout the season, but we strongly encourage you to monitor whenever works for you, as often as you’d like! The more data the better (and anything helps).
There is lots to share, so let’s get into the monitoring recap.
Dauphin
On July 17, Pat noticed an entry/exit at St Paul’s Anglican Church – this site was on our priority site list, so we can now cross it off. Nice!
Ken reports that there is also some use ongoing at the Malcolm Block (213 Main St N), the old Scott’s Hardware building (120 Main St N), and the Hong Kong Café (123 Main St S). They have not observed activity at the Watson Art Centre(104 1st Ave N).
Lower Fort Garry
Gerald monitored the LFG sites on July 17 from 8:30pm-9:55pm. At the Furloft, he saw 1 entry/exit at 8:36pm, 1 entry/exit at 9:35pm, and 1 entry at 9:44pm. The Men’s House was very active, with 1 exit at 8:31pm, 1 entry/exit around 8:34pm, 1 entry/exit around 8:46pm, 1 entry at 8:49pm, 1 entry at 9:00pm, 2 exits at 9:01pm, 1 entry at 9:12pm, 1 entry/exit at 9:14pm, 1 entry/exit around 9:22pm, 1 exit at 9:29pm, 1 entry/exit around 9:32pm, 1 entry/exit around 9:36pm, and 2 entries around 9:40pm. Looks like the swifts at the Men’s House have now moved to feeding non-brooded young.
Morden
Marvin and Evelyn monitored Lucky’s Restaurant on July 16 from 8:34pm-9:14pm and saw 2 entries at 8:39pm, 1 exit at 8:41pm, 1 entry at 8:41pm, 2 exits at 8:42pm, 1 entry at 8:55pm, 1 exit at 8:56pm, 1 entry at 8:56pm, 1 entry at 9:01pm, 1 exit at 9:08pm, 1 exit at 9:09pm, and 1 entry/exit at 9:12pm.
Portage la Prairie
Gordon monitored the United Church on July 17 from 8:55pm-9:50pm and saw lots of activity at the South chimney. There was 1 entry at 8:57pm, 1 exit at 9:08pm, 1 entry/exit around 9:09pm, 1 entry/exit around 9:20pm, 1 exit at 9:30pm, and 2 entries around 9:36pm. Looks like the swifts are feeding young at this site.
Saint-Jean-Baptiste
Luc monitored the Saint-Jean-Baptiste church on July 16 from 8:59pm-9:59pm. He saw 3 entries between 9:45pm-9:50pm.
Selkirk
On the day of the blitz, Amy H. and Cam of the Manitoba Wildlife Branch conducted daytime monitoring of all six Selkirk Mental Health Centre (SMHC) sites. That same evening, the Selkirk Birdwatchers Club also monitored all six SMHC sites. This combination of daytime and roost hour data is so valuable for figuring out what is going on at these sites and makes for interesting comparisons in daytime vs roost activity. I’ll go through the observations one site at a time.
T01: Cam monitored T01 from 10:34am-11:34am and saw 1 entry/exit at 10:56am, and 1 entry at 11:15am. That evening, Fred and Nettie monitored T01 from 8:00pm-10:10pm. They saw 2 exits at 8:35pm, 1 entry at 8:51pm, 1 exit at 9:04pm, 1 exit at 9:30pm, and 3 entries from 9:45pm-9:55pm. Seems like feeding is underway at this site.
T02: Amy monitored T02 from 11:38am-12:38am and saw 1 entry/exit around 11:44am, 1 entry/exit around 12:02pm, 2 entries at 12:15pm, and 2 exits around 12:16pm. That evening, Gerald monitored from 8:30pm-10:10pm. He saw 1 entry/exit around 8:39pm, 1 entry/exit around 8:50pm, 1 entry at 8:53pm, 1 entry/exit around 9:00pm, 1entry/exit at 9:02pm, 2 entries at 9:05pm followed by 1 exit at 9:07pm and 1 exit at 9:15pm, 1 entry/exit around 9:21pm, 1 exit at 9:38pm, and 3 entries between 9:45pm-9:51pm (3 swifts roosting in the chimney). It seems that feeding of non-brooded young is underway, with a possible “helper” swift assisting the nesting pair.
T03: Amy H. monitored T03 from 10:35am-11:13am and saw no activity. That evening, Dennis and Pattie watched T03 from 8:50pm-10:01pm and saw 3 entries between 9:34pm-9:51pm. Judging by the lack of daytime activity at this site, it is likely the nesting attempt at this site has failed.
T04: Cam monitored T04 from11:39am-12:39pm. He saw 2 entries at 11:51am, 1 exit at 11:51am, and 1 exit at 12:00pm. That evening, Gerald monitored T04 from 8:30pm-10:10pm and saw 1 entry at 9:43pm. Hard to say what is happening at this site!
Yellow Brick chimney: Cam monitored the Yellow Brick chimney from 11:39am-12:39pm and saw no entries or exits. Cam noted that several times during the monitoring session, there were swifts swooping down towards the chimney but veering off at the last second. That evening, Nia monitored the Yellow Brick chimney from 8:45pm-10:05pm and saw 1 entry/exit around 9:05pm, and 4 entries between 9:50pm-9:52pm. This site is another confusing one – there is some daytime activity, but it is inconsistent so it’s hard to say for sure if this nest has failed or if there is some type of attempt ongoing.
Infirmary chimney: Amy monitored the Infirmary chimney from 10:35am-11:13am and saw no activity. That evening, Dennis and Pattie watched the Infirmary chimney from 8:50pm-10:01pm and saw 1 exit at 9:06pm and 9 entries between 9:11pm-9:55pm. Another tough one – it seems that this chimney is mainly being used as a roost site, though the “daytime” exit at 9:06pm could indicate a late nesting attempt.
It will be fascinating to continue to follow these sites throughout the rest of the summer and see what happens.
St. Adolphe
There are five sites in St A that are regularly tracked by Barb every year (SE Club Amical, NE Club Amical, Brodeur Bros/Daycare, the Church, and a house on Main St). This year, Barb has been prioritizing the Club Amical and Church chimneys for monitoring. This is because the Club Amical chimneys and the Church don’t have accessible chimney clean-out traps, so Barb must rely on monitoring to know if there are nesting attempts at these sites and if they are successful. The Brodeur Bros/Daycare and the Main St sites, on the other hand, have chimney clean-out traps that can be accessed in the fall and that provide information on any nesting attempts that occurred.
On the day of the blitz (July 16) and throughout the following four days, she spent some time at all five sites to get a sense of what was going on, including squeezing in some short observation sessions at Brodeur Bros and Main St. Here’s a recap of what she saw at each site. e
Club Amical SE: On July 16, this site was feeding Day 2 brooded young and likely has a helper on site. On July 17, Barb caught 1 exchange within 30 minutes of monitoring. On July 18, there were 2 exchanges within 35 minutes. On July 19, she caught 1 exchange as soon as she arrived, confirming the site as still active. On July 20, she saw 1 exit on arrival and an entry 2 minutes later. She suspects that the short between-visit interval could be due to a helper on site and/or a transition to feeding non-brooded young.
NE Club Amical: On July 15, there was no activity during an hour of monitoring. On July 16, there was no activity during a 45-minute session, suggesting day 2 of a nest failure. On July 17, there was once again no entry/exits which confirmed that this nest has failed.
Church: The Church nest failed earlier this month. Interestingly, on July 20, Barb caught sight of a swift exiting the Church chimney with her peripheral vision. Within 30 seconds, she saw a total of 6 swifts exit the chimney… Who are these swifts, and what are they doing? Very strange, but not totally unfamiliar….
In Barb’s words: “There seems to be a replay from the CHSW playbook – a year to the day! Cast your thoughts back to exactly 1 year ago when a swarm of swifts started using the Church chimney as a premigratory roost before the Church nestlings had fledged (End Of July Update July 2024; https://www.mbchimneyswift.com/2024/07/)”
Brodeur Bros/Daycare: On July 16, Barb squeezed in a 15 minute session at this site and didn’t see any entry/exits within that period. On July 17, she spent 30 minutes here and again didn’t see any activity. On July 18, she did another 15 minute session with no activity seen. On July 19, she finally caught an exit upon arrival, confirming that this site is indeed active!
Main St: On July 16, Barb spent 30 minutes watching this site and didn’t see any activity. On July 18, she caught 1 entry/exit during a 15 minute observation period, confirming that this site is active – woohoo!
Winnipeg
Alyssa and Sophia watched the CMU chimney on July 10 from 8:30pm-10:10pm. They saw 1 entry at 9:10pm, 1 exit at 9:17pm, 1 entry at 9:28pm, and 1 entry at 9:43pm. John watched the CMU chimney on July 16 from 9:15am-10:25am and saw 1 entry at 9:25am, 1 entry/exit around 9:42am, 1 entry/exit around 10:05am, and 1 entry/exit around 10:25am. Looks this site is continuing to feed non-brooded young.
Garry monitored 712 Watt St on July 15 from 10:43am-11:48am, and saw 1 entry/exit at 11:13am, 1 entry at 11:39am, and 1 entry/exit at 11:46am. Looks like this site is now into the feeding stage.
On the morning of July 15, Amy M. monitored a private residence on Ruby St for 75 minutes and did not see any entries or exits. She then moved to a private residence on Canora St on saw 2 entries and 1 exit.
On the morning of the blitz, Amy M. and I checked out multiple priority sites in Winnipeg. We started at 71 Kennedy St and caught 1 entry/exit around 9:30am (woohoo – priority site confirmed). We then moved to Balmoral St, where we spent about 45 minutes monitoring a private residence but did not see any activity. We also briefly monitored the apartment building at 39 Balmoral St but did not see any activity while we were there. We then monitored the two priority site chimneys at 222 York Ave. We did not see any activity at these chimneys, though we did see a swift flying low in the very nearby vicinity which we presume exited from the chimney at 180 Main St.
On July 14, Blair monitored 1310 Archibald St from 12:56pm-1:51pm and saw 1 entry/exit at 1:11pm, 1 exit at 1:14pm, and 1 entry/exit around 1:42pm. Blair then monitored 790 Elizabeth Rd from 1:56pm-2:59pm and saw 1 entry/exit around 2:03pm.
On the day of the blitz (July 16), Blair monitored 314 St Anne’s Rd from 1:23pm-2:23pm. He saw 1 entry at 1:35pm, 1 exit at 1:41pm, 1 entry/exit around 1:52pm, 1 entry/exit around 2:00pm, 1 entry/exit around 2:13pm. These 4 entry/exit cycles within 1 hour support that the swifts are feeding non-brooded young at this site.
Frank decided to check out 865 Tache Ave (one of our priority sites) on the evening of the blitz. He watched from 8:30pm-10:05pm but did not see any swift activity (and no swifts heard or seen in the vicinity).
Rudolf monitored the Radmon House Apartments (1010 Brazier St) on July 16 from 6:23pm-7:23pm. He saw 1 exit at 6:38pm, 1 entry at 6:48pm, 1 exit at 6:51pm, 1 exit at 7:00pm, and 1 entry at 7:08pm. He did not see any activity at the Curtis Gordon Hotel or at 1030 Brazier St.
Blitz Reminder, Strange Groupings, Moulting Swifts & More
This year is proving to be an interesting one. Some nests have failed, some swifts are still incubating, and some swifts are feeding young. This past Friday, Barb spotted a group of 18 swifts in St Adolphe, which is the largest group of swifts she’s seen there this year. This increased count is highly unusual for this time of year, given that most sites are still in the incubation or feeding stages. Where did these swifts come from? We would typically expect to see this type of influx of new swifts further into August, as the nesting season wanes and the swifts disperse and form pre-migratory groupings. Barb wonders if this is an early dispersing group of swifts that have joined up with St Adolphe flock – strange times.
Quick reminder that our next monitoring blitz is tomorrow, Wednesday July 16! Daytime or roosting hour monitoring are both helpful. This is a great opportunity to check out what is going on at your “usual” site, or to check out a different site. You can pick a site from our priority site list, or any other site from our database. The full site list can be found in our summary database, at the following link: https://www.mbchimneyswift.com/Documents/2024_2021_database.pdf
The consistent smoke has been a challenge for volunteers and for swifts alike. As always, health and safety are the number one priority. There is never an obligation to monitor – please stay within your comfort levels and stay inside if you are concerned about the air quality.
As you monitor over the next few weeks, you may notice some interesting looking Chimney Swifts. At this time of year, adult Chimney Swifts go through an annual moulting process, during which they replace their worn and damaged feathers. Some birds, like the Canada Goose, moult all their flight feathers in one go, rendering them incapable of flight for several weeks. Chimney Swifts can’t do that, because they are aerial insectivores and need to be able to fly to catch their flying insect prey. Instead, their moult is gradual. This longer moulting process allows them to fly throughout the entire moulting period.
Last week, Barb noticed that some low-flying Chimney Swifts were showing moult characteristics – “discontinuities in the trailing wing margins”. In other words, some noticeable gaps in the feather lengths on the bottom of the wing (as pictured in the photo by Dave Lavigne below).
These moult characteristics are a very helpful tool for telling adult swifts and fledglings apart. Young swifts born this summer will not have any gaps in their wing margins, as all their feathers brand new and they aren’t replacing any.
Rhonda has been keeping an eye on the swifts in Carman. She’s been periodically checking the private residence on 2nd Street, as well as the Memorial hall. She hasn’t seen any activity at the private residence on 2nd Street, but as of July 7th the nesting pair at the Memorial Hall were incubating.
A few more notes from Rhonda: “The swifts are silent with none of the familiar exit chatter as they are in heavy predator territory with both a neighborhood merlin and a molting and very habitual low flying crow on regular patrol who looks like they are keeping a close eye on the chimney at the memorial hall.”
Darlingford
Marvin and Evelyn were driving past Darlingford and took the opportunity to make a quick stop at the Darlingford School Heritage Museum to look for swifts. They watched from 3:39pm-3:59pm and saw 1 entry/exit around 3:46pm. Great to know there is a nesting attempt ongoing at this site this year.
Lockport
Gerald watched the St Andrews Lock and Dam Maintenance Compound on July 13 from 8:25pm-10:05pm. At the south chimney, he saw 1 entry at 9:49pm followed by 1 exit at 9:52pm. At the north chimney, he saw 1 entry at 8:48pm, 1 entry at 9:30pm, 1 exit at 9:31pm, and 1 entry at 9:52pm (he believes this last entry may have been by the same swift that exited the south chimney at 9:52pm).
Lower Fort Garry
On July 9, Gerald monitored the LFG sites from 8:40pm-10:05pm. There was no activity at the Museum building. There was 1 entry into the Furloft at 9:20pm. At the Men’s House, there was 1 entry/exit around 8:48pm, 1 entry/exit around 9:06pm, 1 entry/exit around 9:23pm, and 1 entry at 9:33pm.
Morden
Marvin and Evelyn watched Lucky Chinese Restaurant (321 Stephen St) on July 9 from 8:53pm-9:58pm. They saw 1 entry at 9:07pm, 1 exit at 9:14pm, 1 exit at 9:19pm, at exit at 9:26pm, 1 entry at 9:30pm, and 1 entry at 9:41pm. Marvin notes that the the birds entering the chimney came from the northwest and the approaches were low, so the entries were tough to see and were obscured by trees and buildings. The exits are much easier to spot, because the exiting swifts tend to fly southwest, over the observation point. Marvin is fairly certain there are only 2 swifts at this site and suspects they missed an entry between the 3 exits.
Selkirk
Cam and Amy monitored the Selkirk Mental Health Centre (SMHC) sites during the daytime on July 10. Amy watched T02 from 11:00am-11:45am, and saw 2 entries around 11:02am, 2 exits around 11:04am, 1 entry at 11:07am, 1 exit at 11:10am, and 1 entry/exit at 11:15am. Seems like this site is now showing feeding behaviour, indicating that the eggs have hatched! Amy watched T03 from 10:13am-10:58am and saw 1 exit at 10:41am (likely still at incubation stage).
Cam watched T01 from 10:13am-10:58am, and while there were swifts diving at the tower, he saw no entries or exits. Cam watched T04 and the Yellow Brick chimney from 11:01am-11:46am. At T04, he saw 1 entry/exit at 11:09am, and 1 entry at 11:12am. At the Yellow Brick chimney, there were no entries or exits. Cam notes that at both these sites as well, swifts were slowly diving at the chimney and veering off at the last second. Seems like there was an incubation exchange at T04, but hard to say what is happening at the other two sites.
On July 9, Dennis and Pattie watched the Infirmary chimney and T03 from 9:00pm-10:08pm. At the Infirmary, they saw 2 entries around 9:13pm, 3 entries from 9:34pm-9:38pm, 2 exits at 9:40pm, and 7 entries from 9:42pm-9:51pm (10 swifts roosting in the chimney). At T03, they saw 1 entry at 9:13pm, 1 exit at 9:27pm, 3 entries from 9:40pm-9:48pm, and 1 exit followed by 1 entry at 9:49pm (3 swifts roosting in the tower).
Lisa and Monty watched T02 from 8:57pm-10:07pm and saw lots of activity. They saw 1 exit at 9:00pm, 1 entry at 9:01pm, 2 entries at 9:06pm, 2 exits at 9:07pm, 1 exit at 9:10pm, 1 entry at 9:14pm, 1 entry at 9:26pm, 1 exit at 9:31pm, 1 entry at 9:32pm, 1 exit at 9:34pm, 1 entry at 9:35pm, 3 entries at 9:39pm, 1 exit and 1 entry at 9:40pm, 2 exits at 9:41pm, and 4 entries from 9:46pm-9:58pm (7 swifts roosting in the tower).
On July 10, Nia watched the Yellow Brick chimney from 9:02pm-10:05pm and saw 1 entry at 9:55pm. Fred and Nettie watched T01 from 8:00pm-10:10pm and saw 1 entry at 8:40pm, 1 exit at 9:10pm and 1 entry at 9:11pm.
On July 12, Linda watched T04 from 9:03pm-10:09pm and saw no entries or exits.
St. Adolphe
Many updates to share from Barb regarding the St Adolphe swifts. As of July 7, both the SE and NE Club Amical chimneys remained active (despite ongoing loud construction near at the Bear Store across the road). Both sites showed no indication of hatching or feeding yet.
Barb visited the Church on July 8. Here’s her report: “Church was quite quiet – it was 10C overnight and noticeably chilly this morning and I was in ST A by 9 AM. By 10 AM the feeding action picked up by a group of 8 individuals around the cemetery/rectory/Church area. No entries/exits surprised me over the 35 min observation period but the group of snoops did make repeated flyovers of the rim.” While there, she also saw an exit at Brodeur Bros./Daycare, confirming that this site is still active.
On July 9, Barb saw 1 exit from the Church as she arrived but did not see any other activity for the next 45 minutes – she fears that there has been a nest failure at this site. Barb also noticed the “Snoop Group” (a group of curious swifts that have a tendency to check out chimneys by approaching the chimney and veering away at the last second) diving at the Club Amical SE chimney.
On July 10, Barb stopped by the Club Amical chimneys for a quick 15 minute monitoring session. She didn’t catch any entries or exits, but she did see a single bird dive towards the NE chimney and veer off, twice.
On July 11, Barb spent 30 minutes at the Club Amical. The air was smoky and she did not see any swift activity. She also noted that there were no swallows or martins in the area. She did see a couple of swifts in the distance as she was leaving the Club Amical to head to the Church. She spent 15 minutes at the Church and did see a group of 18 swifts on a few occasions, foraging in the area. There were no entries or exits at the Church. As mentioned at the beginning of this post, this group of 18 swifts is the biggest group of swifts she’s seen in St. Adolphe so far this season and was surprising to see so early in the season!
Barb returned over the weekend to investigate further. The NE Club Amical site remained active, with feeding activity on Sunday. She didn’t see any activity at the SE Club Amical site on Sunday but did see activity on Monday (likely still incubating).
Winnipeg
John monitored the CMU chimney on July 3 from 9:44am-10:53am, and saw 1 exit at 9:58am. Paul monitored this chimney on July 13 from 7:27pm-8:57pm and saw 1 entry/exit at 7:40pm, 1 entry/exit at 8:12pm, 1 entry/exit at 8:34pm, and 1 entry/exit at 8:54pm. Lots of entry/exits within the 90 minute observation period. Judging by this high feeding rate, the swifts are likely feeding non-brooded young.
Tim dropped by a few priority sites on the evening of July 8. He spent some time at King George Court (272 Cockburn St) and at Lanark Gardens (465 Lanark St). Unfortunately he did not see any entries or exits at either site. He did note that he observed a low-flying swift around the Lanark Gardens courtyard so it likely did exit one of the chimneys on site. Hard to watch the many chimneys on site at once!
Frank checked out the Home Street Mennonite Church (318 Home St) on July 9 during the roosting hour. He saw 1 exit at 8:21pm, 1 exit at 8:51pm, and 1 entry at 9:53pm. We can now cross that site off the priority site list, woohoo!
On July 5, Blair monitored Kaljieb Electrics (690 Joseph St) from 1:45pm-2:30pm and saw 1 entry/exit at around 2:20pm. Blair then monitored Springs Christian Academy (261 Youville St) from 2:46pm-3:31pm and saw 1 entry/exit around 2:56pm. On July 6, Blair monitored Nelson McIntyre Collegiate (188 St Mary’s Rd) from 1:55pm-3:10pm and saw 1 entry/exit around 2:04pm. Seems that incubation was ongoing at all three sites at the time of monitoring.
On July 10, Blair monitored the St. Boniface Fire Hall (864 Marion St) from 5:07pm-6:07pm and saw 1 entry/exit around 5:42pm, and 1 entry/exit around 6:04pm. These 2 exchanges within an hour support that the swifts here are now feeding brooded young.
On July 11, Blair monitored Riverside Billiards (531 St Mary’s Rd) from 11:37am-12:38pm and saw 1 entry/exit around 11:55am. Looks like incubation is still ongoing at this site.
Amy M. spent an hour monitoring at the St Norbert Parish Church (80 St Pierre St) on the morning of July 11, and did not see any activity.
On July 14, Amy monitored the Kildonan United Church (187 Kilbride Ave) from 3:30pm-4:15pm and saw 1 entry at 3:42pm and 1 entry at 3:50pm. This site was on our priority site list, so we can now cross it off our list.
Based on your monitoring observations from the first week of July, it seems that many sites are still incubating. However, we’ve officially got hatchlings at the Church in St. Adolphe! Barb estimates that the eggs hatched sometime between the afternoon of July 2 and the morning of July 3, based on the noticeable increase in entries/exits at this site on July 3 compared to July 1 (more details in the monitoring recap below). This is great news! We expect that more sites will start showing these increased rates of activity any day now.
Just a reminder that our next monitoring blitz is onWednesday, July 16.
If you have any questions or comments, please don’t hesitate to reach out! The best way to reach me is by email at mbchimneyswift@gmail.com.
Thanks for being here! Time for the monitoring recap.
Hartney
The swifts in Hartney and their irregular activity has continued to lead Katharine on a true rollercoaster this year. When she last monitored the Hart-Cam Museum on June 21, 2 swifts entered to roost for the night. On July 1, Katharine monitored the Museum from 6:33pm-10:33pm. 4 hours – wow! That might be a new record for longest monitoring session. Unfortunately, there was zero sign of the swifts.
The next day, whilst sitting on her friend’s patio in Hartney, she happened to notice a Chimney Swift in the sky. The lone swift was flying in proximity to a group of Barn Swallows before flying southward, solo. She decided to return to the Hart-Cam museum that evening, to see if this swift might make an appearance to roost. She watched from 9:07pm-10:40pm. This time, she did see a swift flying in the airspace above the chimney.
From Katharine: “I almost wondered if this could be a different swift than one of the original 2 that I had watched on the previous trips. It would forage and then fly relatively close to the chimney as if it was thinking to enter and then would pass over. Finally, at 9:31 pm, it hovered over the chimney and began to descend, but then aborted and flew off again at the last second. It then made a number of aborted attempts to enter the chimney. At 9:36 pm, it made a final aborted attempt, but within a few seconds returned and entered the chimney. There was no further activity and no exits were observed. If it was one of the original two swifts, why was it acting so hesitant to enter the chimney?”
It’s hard to know exactly what is going on at this site, but it feels safe to say that there is not currently an ongoing nesting attempt. This site will be an interesting one to follow. Thank you Katharine, for your diligent monitoring efforts!
La Broquerie
Frank made the trip out to La Broquerie on July to monitor the St Joachim Church from 8:30pm-10:10pm. He observed a few trio fly-overs starting at 8:35pm, and a group of six swifts flying over at 9:14pm. He saw 3 entries into the small chimney at 9:21pm, and 1 entry into the large chimney at 9:36pm. Two swifts remained unaccounted for at the end of the roosting hour. The two church chimneys are the only two known Chimney Swifts sites in La Broquerie. Where did these other two swifts go to roost?! It’s possible that they entered very late. Or perhaps, there is another undiscovered site nearby!
Lower Fort Garry
Gerald monitored the LFG sites on June 30, with the assistance of his trusty video camera.
At the Men’s House, there was 1 entry at 8:59pm and 1 entry at 9:58pm. At the Fur Loft, there was 1 entry at 8:26pm, 1 exit at 8:36pm, 1 entry at 8:40pm, 1 exit at 9:15pm, and 1 entry at 9:36pm. At the Museum, there was 1 entry at 8:57pm and 1 entry at 9:54pm. Gerald noted that there were still a few swifts flying around at 10:05pm and he is unsure where they went. Interesting observations!
Portage la Prairie
On July 4, Jana monitored the United Church from 9:21pm-10:11pm. At the south chimney, she saw 1 exit at 9:36pm, and 2 entries around 10:00pm. She did see up to 12 swifts in the sky throughout the monitoring session.
Selkirk
On July 2, Dennis and Pattie watched T03 and the Infirmary chimney from 8:53pm-10:15pm.
At T03, they saw 2 entries at 9:37pm, 2 exits at 9:47pm, 2 entries at 9:54pm, 1 entry/exit at 9:55pm, 1 entry at 9:58pm, 1 exit at 10:04pm, and 3 entries at 10:12pm (5 swifts roosting in the tower). At the Infirmary chimney, they saw 2 exits at 8:58pm, 1 entry at 9:22pm, 1 entry at 9:29pm, 2 exits around 9:33pm, and 7 entries between 9:47pm-10:12pm (7 swifts roosting in the chimney).
On July 3, Nia and Linda monitored the Yellow Brick chimney and T04 from 9:09pm-10:10pm. At the T04, they saw 1 entry at 9:32pm, and 3 exits from 9:40pm-9:51pm (up to 3 swifts in the chimney at once, but none at the end of the roosting hour). At the Yellow Brick chimney, they saw 1 entry at 9:34pm, 1 exit at 9:42pm, and 4 entries from 9:49pm-9:56pm.
St. Adolphe
Barb continues to keep a close eye on the St Adolphe sites. On July 2, Barb monitored the SE and NE Club Amical chimneys from 9:50am-10:35am. At the NE chimney, she saw 1 swift enter the chimney at 9:50am, followed by another entry 30 seconds later. 2 minutes later, she saw 1 of the swifts exit. She then saw 1 entry at 10:34am. Barb’s notes: “Based on two in the air and >50% of the obs. period with an attending adult, the NE pair are likely incubating”. At the SE chimney, she saw 1 exit at 10:30am (meaning that the site was attended for at least 40 minutes). Like the NE chimney, this site also had >50% of the observation period with an attending adult which supports incubation (assuming that there is still a second swift present at this site – its whereabouts during this monitoring session remain a mystery).
When Barb monitored the Church on July 1, the swifts were still showing activity consistent with incubation. Barb returned to the Church on July 3 and watched from 8:45am-9:45am. She saw 3 entries and 3 exits within one hour, along with a few “drop and veers” (a fast approach but no entry). This is a noticeable increase in activity compared to July 1, which strongly supports that there are officially hatchlings at the Church! She also suspects there may be a helper on site with the breeding pair.
The Pas
Joel has noticed Chimney Swifts in a few areas around The Pas. On June 12 he saw 3 swifts near the Lathlin/Settee junctions. On June 15, he noticed a Chimney Swift at Grace Lake, flying with various swallow species. On June 28, he noticed 2 swifts over the VIA Rail/Bignell area. On July 2, he saw 3 swifts overhead near the Lorraine Apartments (which has been used as a nesting sites for the last few years).
Wasagaming
Pam monitored 106 Buffalo Drive in Wasagaming on June 30 during the roosting hour and did not see any swifts.
Winnipeg
Graham watched the CMU chimney on June 30 from 9:10pm-10:10pm, and saw 3 entries between 9:42pm-9:54pm. Graham also noted that before these entries, there were a few “fake outs” where a swift approached the chimney and then veered away, not entering.
Garry monitored 722 Watt St on July 4 from 7:31am-8:32am. He saw 1 entry/exit around 8:21am. Looks like incubation is ongoing at this site.
Thanks everyone! Here is the updated priority site list:
We’ve reached the end of June, and the swift nesting season is in full swing! Over the past few weeks, most nesting swifts have been incubating. This stage, which last 18-21 days, is characterized by the observation of classic incubation exchanges (an entry followed by an exit within a couple of minutes as the parents switch-off on “keeping the eggs warm” duty). Because this exchange only happens about once per hour, it can make for rather uneventful monitoring sessions.
As we move into July and further into the nesting season, the young should very soon begin to hatch and the adults will move into feeding behaviour. This is great news for us monitors! This feeding behaviour should bring higher levels of activity as the parents enter and exit more frequently to feed the young. For the first week or so after hatching, the young are what we called “brooded” which means they still need to be kept warm by a parent. During this stage, feeding typically happens 2-3 times per hour. Once the young become “non-brooded” (and hungrier and hungrier), feeding rates will increase to 3-4 times per hour.
Daytime activity at nesting sites will continue to increase throughout the month, so daytime monitoring is a great option at this time of year. Roost hour monitoring also continues to be a great option season-round, as swifts will always roost inside a chimney or tower overnight.
With that, let’s launch into the recap. Thank you for continuing to send in your monitoring reports!
Dominion City
Dave, whose house is a nesting site for swifts, is continuing to keep an eye out for other potential nesting sites in Dominion City. He has spotted up to 6 swifts flying over his house, so there are likely other sites nearby.
Hartney
Katharine monitored the Hart-Cam Museum on June 20 for 40 minutes. She saw 1 entry at 6:54pm and did not see an exit before ending her monitoring session at 7:33pm. She did not see the second swift again. On June 21, she monitored from 7:14pm-10:07pm. This time, she saw 2 swifts flying in the air together. She saw 1 entry at 8:32pm,1 exit at 8:36pm, and then saw both swifts enter around 9:59pm.
Lockport
On June 20, Gerald observed the two chimneys at the St. Andrews Lock and Dam Maintenance Compound and did not see any activity. He suspects they may have entered early due to showers in the surrounding area. Gerald returned the next day on June 21, to check for the swifts. He saw 2 swifts enter the north chimney during the roosting hour. There was no activity at the south chimney.
Lower Fort Garry
Gerald monitored Lower Fort Garry on June 24 from 8:22pm-10:05pm. At the Fur Loft, there was 1 entry at 8:35pm, 2 entries around 9:37pm, and 1 exit at 9:40pm (up to 3 swifts inside the chimney but only 2 inside at the end of the roosting hour). At the Men’s House, there was 1 entry at 8:47pm, 1 entry at 9:17pm, and 1 entry at 9:54pm. Interestingly, Gerald also noticed swift action at the chimney on the west side of the Museum building, including 1 exit at 8:34pm. He also saw swifts diving at this chimney, but there didn’t seem to be any entries.
Morden
Marvin and Evelyn monitored Lucky Chinese Restaurant on June 24, from 9:02pm-9:50pm. They saw 1 entry/exit around 9:24pm, followed by 2 entries at 9:42pm. Marvin noted that it’s hard to know for sure if there are 2 or 3 swifts using this chimney.
Portage la Prairie
Gordon and Jana watched the courthouse (formerly the correctional centre) on June 24 during the roosting hour and saw 1 entry into the small north chimney.
Selkirk
The Selkirk Mental Health Centre continues to provide some very eventful monitoring sessions.
On June 24, Dennis and Pattie watched the Infirmary chimney and T03 from 9:09pm-10:22pm. At the Infirmary, there were 2 exits at 9:13pm, 1 entry at 9:34pm, 1 entry at 9:46pm, 1 exit at 9:51pm, 1 entry at 9:56pm, 7 entries around 10:01pm, 1 exit at 10:03pm, 1 entry/exit at 10:06pm, 1 exit at 10:16pm, and 4 entries around 10:18pm (11 swifts roosting in the chimney). At T03, there was 1 exit at 9:09pm, 1 entry/exit around 9:16pm, 1 exit at 9:35pm, 2 entries at 9:36pm, 2 exits at 9:43pm, 1 exit at 9:50pm, 1 entry/exit around 9:53pm, 1 exit at 9:59pm, 2 entries at 10:00pm, 2 entries around 10:10pm, 1 exit at 10:13pm, 2 entries around 10:13pm, and 1 entry/exit at 10:19pm (6 swifts roosting in the tower).
Cam spent some time at SMHC on the afternoon of June 25. At T03, there was 1 entry followed by 1 exit 8 minutes later (likely an incubation exchange). At T01, there was 1 exit, followed by 1 entry 5 minutes later, followed by 1 exit 18 minutes later (likely an incubation exchange). At T04, there was 1 entry 9 minutes into the session, followed by 1 exit 10 minutes later (likely an incubation exchange). At the Yellow Brick chimney, there was 1 entry at the end of the monitoring session. Cam left shortly afterwards so was not able to see if there was an exit, but this was likely part of an incubation exchange as well. At the Infirmary, there were 2 exits right at the start of the session. 10 minutes later, a pair entered and exited within a minute. Tim suspects this pair might be initiating a late nesting attempt.
On June 25, Lisa and Monty monitored T02 from 8:30pm-10:19pm. They saw 1 entry/exit around 8:39pm, 1 exit at 9:05pm, 1 entry at 9:05pm, 1 entry/exit around 9:29pm, 2 entries around 10:04pm, 1 exit at 10:09pm, and 1 entry at 10:13pm (3 swifts in the tower at the end of the roosting hour).
On June 26, Fred and Nettie monitored T01 from 7:50pm-10:17pm. They saw 1 exit at 8:24pm, 1 entry at 9:40pm, 1 entry/exit at 9:53pm, 1 entry/exit at 9:55pm, 1 exit at 9:56pm, 2 entries and 1 exit at 10:00pm, 1 entry at 10:03pm and 1 exit at 10:10pm (2 swifts observed using the tower but 1 inside at the end of the roosting hour). Nia and Linda watched the Yellow Brick chimney and T04 from 8:55pm-10:13pm. At the Yellow Brick chimney, they saw 1 entry at 9:45pm, 1 exit at 9:54pm, and 3 entries at 10:04pm (3 swifts in the chimney at the end of the roosting hour). At T04, they saw 5 entries throughout the roosting hour.
It’s very interesting to compare the daytime activity with the roosting hour activity. Most of these sites are showing high levels of evening activity, with pretty typical incubation activity during the daytime. It is a fascinating situation to get to follow!
Souris
On June 20, Katharine watched Kowalchuk’s Funeral Home from 1:36-2:51pm and saw no entries or exits (though there were several swifts in the airspace). Katharine then watched the Hillcrest Museum from 2:55-4:10pm and though she saw up to 6 swifts in the area, she saw no entries or exits. Katharine watched the former Chocolate Shop (now named Dimitri’s Tavern) from 4:46pm-6:02pm and saw 1 entry at 5:29pm and 1 exit at 5:45pm.
St. Norbert
Blaire monitored the St. Norbert Behavioural Health Foundation chimney on June 18 and saw no entries or exits. On June 20, she noticed some interesting swift behaviour near the St. Norbert Parish Church chimney. Two swifts were flying up and then approaching the chimney but aborting their entries at the last second. She saw them do this 3 times in a row. Interesting! This site last confirmed use by swifts in 2021.
Stonewall
Tim stopped by 336 Main St (a priority site) on June 25, and caught 1 exit at 10:02am. We can now cross that site off our priority site list. Woohoo!
Winnipeg
Blair monitored the Marion Hotel (393 Marion St) on the morning of June 24 for 1 hour and did not see any activity. On the morning of June 25, Blair monitored the Nordale School (99 Birchdale Ave) for an hour and though a swift flew by, there was no activity at the chimney. On the morning off June 28, Blair checked out a private residence on Ferndale Ave and while he saw 4 swifts flying around to the south of the building, he did not see any entries.
On the morning of June 24, Amy M. monitored the private residence on Canora St in Wolseley (on our priority site list) and saw 2 exits. Another site crossed off our priority list!
On the morning of June 25, Amy monitored the private residence on Park Boulevard N (priority site). While she did see 6 swifts flying overhead, she did not see any entries or exits. Next, she moved a few blocks over to a private residence on Hosmer Boulevard. The owners at this house have let us know that they believe there are swifts using their chimney, so Amy went and monitored. She did see 1 entry, so we’ve officially got a new site to add to the database! Great news.
Graham and Tyler monitored the CMU chimney on June 25 from 9:00pm-10:11pm. They saw 1 entry at 9:43pm and 1 entry at 9:49pm.
Jennifer reports that she is often near the chimney at the Centre Culturel Franco-Manitobain on Provencher and has seen lots of activity, including many entries and exits. Great to hear that this chimney is still very active.
Breanne monitored the Maryland Foodfare chimney on June 28 from 8:50pm-10:20pm and saw no activity. This lack of swift action was unexpected, because she was regularly seeing 2 swifts at this site throughout the month of June. Fingers crossed they entered extra early and are seen again next week!
That’s the end of our monitoring recap. Thanks everyone!
