As of 8:55 A.M. we have two lovely eggs. Normally the eggs of Chimney Swifts are laid every other day early in the morning. This is right on schedule, following the first laid on June 3. These are complex and beautiful little birds. They will be fun to watch and study right up to the end of August.
We seem to have at 9:27 A.M. the first egg. Female had been sitting on nest from early this morning. Egg seems large and in a precarious position – at least from camera view.
Excellent. Thanks Carol!
Thanks, Admin.
Bob,
This is the link for the article in The Wilson Bulletin (Vol. 64, No. 3) mentioned and nicely summarized by Jacques Beaugrand. Had found it some time ago when I began to research Chimney Swifts. Very interesting.
Do swifts continue to do huddling in group when the eggs are laid and incubation begins? There must surely occur more agonistic and spacing out behaviors to restrict the vicinity of the nest. I cannot imagine a couple reproducing efficiently with neighbors hanging around the nest, unless the latter procure some advantage, some help.
I agree, Jacques. Someone should be using these video, going back several years, for original research. Need to find the right person.
There are four swifts in view now. What is the relationship between them? Banding them for research might not help because of the difficulty of reading bands on wild, flighted birds to identify individuals. I wonder if anyone has tried wing tags, which could be read without recapture, for swifts and other songbirds of the general type used for vultures?
Hi, Mike. Has any research been published on the Swifts that nest in this tower? It is my understanding that you built and have been monitoring the tower for the past couple of years.
Can you tell me where I can find your videos of previous seasons? I maintain a thread on RRP Forum and would like to make reference to them. There is a growing interest there. Believe it’s important to make people aware of the plight of Swifts. And they’re just plain fascinating to birders.
There is no research going on with this cam anymore. Thanks for asking !!
is someone doing a research using these tapes? What would be need is some way to recognize each bird individually (=identification).
There were other Swifts elsewhere in this same chimney, not appearing earlier on the video. At 01h20 and later, more birds joined those already on the nest. At 01h29 I could count 8 birds. The insert on the left is difficult to read but it would seem to me that the temperature had dropped to 3C. Huddling is a thermoregulatory behavior, in part at least.
It is 21h: I see two additional birds huddling with others to keep warm. They are all perched on the nest in construction. Maybe the two additional birds are fledglings from the previous year. In some species, these young try to reproduce on their own but lack the required experience. They learn further by trial and error and by observing their parents raising the next brood. In some species they may help at the nest and postponing their own reproduction to the year thereafter.
Great camera view, Mike. Thanks!
I see four adult birds, three on a nest straight ahead and a forth at the left, perhaps just clinging to the wall. What’s going on?
Thank you so much. I had only expected to see one nest and was surprised to see two, especially so close together.
There seems to be some interest on U-stream and also on my thread in RRP Forum. Really appreciate the fact that we will be able to observe what’s going on. This should encourage more viewers to stay with the site and learn about these very important birds and how important it is to provide supplemental man made nesting to ensure their numbers don’t continue to decline.
Your welcome ! Chimney Swifts never ever nest together. The female was not happy with the nest location and decided to move it.
Thanks, Bob. I have my answer with wonderful close ups of two nests this evening. Thanks, Mike.
Mike controls this camera. I do not know its capability.
Adult flies out of “nesting’ area and lands for a brief few seconds , then flies out at 8:08 A.M. Activity seems to be a bit lowing now. Wish we had zoom here or a camera that could capture area at far end. Capture posted to Forum.
Very exciting moment this morning. Although I have seen adults entering and exiting tower several times, I had not expected to see one land. Have posted to Forum a screen capture of adult on the surface at tower entrance. He landed at 6:30 A.M. and stayed only a minute, just long enough.
The nest and movement of the Swifts can be seen so much more clearly with IR. Quite a bit of activity both yesterday and today. Camera has improved considerably.
Bob, will there be any zooming in here so that we can see the activity more clearly?
5/13 8:44 a.m. I see a nest with wing movement. Very neat.
As of 8:55 A.M. we have two lovely eggs. Normally the eggs of Chimney Swifts are laid every other day early in the morning. This is right on schedule, following the first laid on June 3. These are complex and beautiful little birds. They will be fun to watch and study right up to the end of August.
We seem to have at 9:27 A.M. the first egg. Female had been sitting on nest from early this morning. Egg seems large and in a precarious position – at least from camera view.
Excellent. Thanks Carol!
Thanks, Admin.
Bob,
This is the link for the article in The Wilson Bulletin (Vol. 64, No. 3) mentioned and nicely summarized by Jacques Beaugrand. Had found it some time ago when I began to research Chimney Swifts. Very interesting.
http://sora.unm.edu/sites/default/files/journals/wilson/v064n03/p0133-p0139.pdf
Do swifts continue to do huddling in group when the eggs are laid and incubation begins? There must surely occur more agonistic and spacing out behaviors to restrict the vicinity of the nest. I cannot imagine a couple reproducing efficiently with neighbors hanging around the nest, unless the latter procure some advantage, some help.
I agree, Jacques. Someone should be using these video, going back several years, for original research. Need to find the right person.
There are four swifts in view now. What is the relationship between them? Banding them for research might not help because of the difficulty of reading bands on wild, flighted birds to identify individuals. I wonder if anyone has tried wing tags, which could be read without recapture, for swifts and other songbirds of the general type used for vultures?
Hi, Carol.
Here’s a link for the year 2008 http://watch.birds.cornell.edu/nestcams/camera/view?cameraID=C100032. Cornell and kept track of this cam until 2011. Just choose the other years from the drop down menu to see the other years as well. Thanks !
Hi, Mike. Has any research been published on the Swifts that nest in this tower? It is my understanding that you built and have been monitoring the tower for the past couple of years.
Can you tell me where I can find your videos of previous seasons? I maintain a thread on RRP Forum and would like to make reference to them. There is a growing interest there. Believe it’s important to make people aware of the plight of Swifts. And they’re just plain fascinating to birders.
There is no research going on with this cam anymore. Thanks for asking !!
is someone doing a research using these tapes? What would be need is some way to recognize each bird individually (=identification).
There were other Swifts elsewhere in this same chimney, not appearing earlier on the video. At 01h20 and later, more birds joined those already on the nest. At 01h29 I could count 8 birds. The insert on the left is difficult to read but it would seem to me that the temperature had dropped to 3C. Huddling is a thermoregulatory behavior, in part at least.
It is 21h: I see two additional birds huddling with others to keep warm. They are all perched on the nest in construction. Maybe the two additional birds are fledglings from the previous year. In some species, these young try to reproduce on their own but lack the required experience. They learn further by trial and error and by observing their parents raising the next brood. In some species they may help at the nest and postponing their own reproduction to the year thereafter.
Great camera view, Mike. Thanks!
I see four adult birds, three on a nest straight ahead and a forth at the left, perhaps just clinging to the wall. What’s going on?
Thank you so much. I had only expected to see one nest and was surprised to see two, especially so close together.
There seems to be some interest on U-stream and also on my thread in RRP Forum. Really appreciate the fact that we will be able to observe what’s going on. This should encourage more viewers to stay with the site and learn about these very important birds and how important it is to provide supplemental man made nesting to ensure their numbers don’t continue to decline.
Your welcome ! Chimney Swifts never ever nest together. The female was not happy with the nest location and decided to move it.
Thanks, Bob. I have my answer with wonderful close ups of two nests this evening. Thanks, Mike.
Mike controls this camera. I do not know its capability.
Adult flies out of “nesting’ area and lands for a brief few seconds , then flies out at 8:08 A.M. Activity seems to be a bit lowing now. Wish we had zoom here or a camera that could capture area at far end. Capture posted to Forum.
Very exciting moment this morning. Although I have seen adults entering and exiting tower several times, I had not expected to see one land. Have posted to Forum a screen capture of adult on the surface at tower entrance. He landed at 6:30 A.M. and stayed only a minute, just long enough.
The nest and movement of the Swifts can be seen so much more clearly with IR. Quite a bit of activity both yesterday and today. Camera has improved considerably.
Bob, will there be any zooming in here so that we can see the activity more clearly?
5/13 8:44 a.m. I see a nest with wing movement. Very neat.
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Chimney swifts have arrived for yet another season. Mike has already witnessed/filmed swifts mating on the wall of the tower he constructed for them.