Agreed. Here at Thornton Creek (Lincoln) Tree Swallows usually depart after one
nesting. I rarely see them after mid-July and never as late as September.
Darrel
----- Original Message -----
From: "Alan Contreras" <acontrer56@xxxxxxxxx>
To: "noah strycker" <noah.strycker@xxxxxxxxx>
Cc: "obol" <obol@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Wednesday, September 15, 2021 4:45:25 PM
Subject: [obol] Re: Watch those white-bellied swallows...
There were a couple of legitimate Trees in the roost at Orchard Point at Fern
Ridge last weekend. The ones I saw were perched imms, which sometimes look like
a blurry Bank with a soft spot or break in the breast “band.” Also present were
one Cliff and one real Bank.
99% of the thousands present seemed to be VGs and Barns. We saw no Rough-wings
or martins.
Hundreds of VGs have been moving through the burns in the passes, apparently
roosting in the snags.
Alan Contreras
Eugene, Oregon
acontrer56@xxxxxxxxx
www.alanlcontreras.com
On Sep 15, 2021, at 4:31 PM, Noah Strycker <noah.strycker@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:*******
Hi all,
For the past few fall seasons, I've been interested in the departure date of
Tree Swallows from Oregon, and have looked carefully at the white-bellied
swallows I see.
Going through my own records, I've evidently only ever seen one (!)
individual Tree Swallow in Oregon during the month of September, and none in
October. It seems like Tree Swallows pretty much disappear after August, at
least from the places I visit.
On eBird, there are only four definite Tree Swallow photos from Oregon in
September, and just one in October (compared to many Violet-greens), each
seemingly from observers who were aware that they were documenting stragglers.
But there are lots of sight reports of Tree Swallows in Oregon, on eBird and
elsewhere, often of double-digit numbers and usually without details,
throughout September and October. These are probably almost all misidentified
Violet-greens. It's easy to see white-bellied swallows flying in places where
they were common earlier in the summer, and put down some Tree Swallows
without thinking about it, especially with dusky-cheeked young Violet-greens
in the mix.
So, look carefully from now on: Do you really see a Tree Swallow? If so, get
a photo! Doubtless there are occasional late ones hanging around, but Tree
Swallows seem to be much rarer than many birders realize after mid-September,
and are certainly worth a second look. (Winter records starting in December,
of course, are another story...)
Just something to watch for as fall is upon us ;)
Good birding,
Noah
