[obol] Re: Possible CHIMNEY SWIFT, Roseburg, Douglas County
- From: Jeff Gilligan <jeffgilligan10@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: matthewghunter@xxxxxxxxx
- Date: Mon, 13 May 2013 22:34:23 -0700
Hi Matt
It sounds like you did see a Chimney Swift. I saw two less than a week ago in
flight together from a shuttle bus going over a bridge that overlooked a
neighborhood near San Pedro, CA. They were close to the bridge and it was
clear immediately that they were not Vaux's. As many Vaux's as you have seen,
the size and heavier build of a Chimney Swift would likely be apparent to you.
I have been on the lookout for Chimney Swift in Oregon for decades, and so far
no luck. Jeff
On May 13, 2013, at 10:18 PM, Matthew G Hunter <matthewghunter@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> Hi Folks,
>
> I feel like I should apologize first because of the two-day delay, but ...
> let me just tell you my experience, and I would appreciate input/perspectives
> from anyone that is familiar with Chimney Swifts. I am not.
>
> I had volunteered to count the swifts coming into the Clay Place, behind the
> Umpqua Valley Arts Center, in Roseburg, on Harvard Blvd., Saturday evening,
> May 11. The swift-watcher people were doing an all west-coast count that
> evening. Anyway, I had my 3 kids there with me to help count and give them
> some experience in doing that.
>
> We got there at 2000 hrs. There were a few swifts around, and a small bunch
> of about 5 or 6 came in about 2015 hrs and seemed to consider going down in
> the chimney. At that moment--you know they sometimes slow down and flap over
> a greater range--I saw that one of the swifts was noticeably larger, and at
> the same time noticed that it had a missing feather or something on its right
> wing. My first thought (in a split second) was to consider Black Swift; after
> all, that is the "other" dark swift we have in Oregon. But, instantly
> checking it for that species resulted in a no, because it was just brown and
> wasn't that big (Black Swifts are really striking, especially that close;
> this would be about 100 ft away). And at that moment the small group broke
> off, did not go in the chimney, and kind of split up. I followed the bird,
> turned on my camera, and took a couple (of course) fuzzy shots (links below).
> I have no idea if these will be helpful in any way. They are basically
> silhouettes; you cannot judge how dark or light the bird is from these, but
> you can see the shape of the bird and the missing feather in the right wing.
> Anyway, while I was taking photos I heard a call three times that I had never
> heard before and very striking, coming from this bird. It was a really rapid
> trill/twitter, sustained longer than any twitters from Vaux's (no real clear
> notes like in Vaux's), not so squeeky/clear/whistley as the Vaux's Swift
> calls, and seemed lower pitched perhaps because of that. I recalled at the
> time that the call was a good way to detect and identify Chimney Swifts, but
> I did not know the call myself, ... and I was there to count swifts, ... and
> I was helping my kids to learn to count, and ... I was tired and ... nawww it
> couldn't be, and ... aww nevermind, and... I need to figure out what I'm
> doing the next few days for work, and... (all the excuses I can come up with
> at the moment).
>
> So, just this evening, I looked at my Sibley's and listened to some calls
> online. And, Oh my gosh, ... I feel like I'm in trouble now. I strongly
> suspect the bird was a Chimney Swift. Like I said, I do not have personal
> experience with Chimney Swifts (so in other words, I could not recognize it
> instantly as something familiar, if you know what I mean). I did live in
> Virginia for a year, but that was 20 years ago, and that did not give me real
> lasting experience with that species. What I am very familiar with is Vaux's
> Swift. If I had only seen the bird, I could pass it off as possible me
> mis-judging the size. If I had only heard the call, I could pass it off as a
> who-knows-what (perhaps a hummingbird, or odd Vaux's or ???), but, both
> together gives strong evidence that it was something other than a Vaux's.
>
> My subject heading is "possible" Chimney Swift because, well, it is a big
> jump for me, not having had memorable experience with the species. That's why
> I'm interested to hear others' perspectives who do have experience with the
> species.
>
> I have no idea how many days, if any, the birds in this chimney stay before
> moving on. I didn't see the bird go in the chimney. But then again, as it got
> darker it was much more difficult to even see when any swifts were
> approaching and they would sometimes go in without much pre-warning.
>
> My fuzzy photos are at
>
> http://www.flickr.com/photos/matthewghunter/8736538881/in/photostream/
> and
> http://www.flickr.com/photos/matthewghunter/8737660020/in/photostream/
>
> eBird report of Vaux's Swift roost count, with map of location, is at
> http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S14107808
>
> I'm interested to hear your thoughts, questions, etc. Thanks.
>
> Matt Hunter
> Melrose, OR
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