Chimney swifts are gathering and preparing to make their annual migration to South America. Join other bird enthusiasts and learn about these amazing aerial insectivores at one of our upcoming Swift Night Out Events.
Swift Night Out – Bellaire
Day, Date & Time: Monday, August 31 at 7:30 pm
Program Location: The exact location of this count will be decided and posted on August 29 and will depend on which site has the greatest number of swifts using the chimney at the time. The count with either take place at Whole Foods Market at 4004 Bellaire Blvd, Houston TX 77025 or at Pershing Middle School. The meeting spot for Whole Foods is their parking lot. The meeting spot for Pershing Middle School is the parking lot on the north side which has a view of the chimney. The parking lot is off Stella Link Rd, just south of Bellefontaine St.
Registration: No registration required. This is a FREE drop-in program.
Bring: Bug spray, folding chair, a water bottle, and a snack if you’d like. Binoculars are optional because the swifts will be visible with be naked eye.
Sponsored By: Houston Audubon, Nature Discovery Center
Swift Night Out – Rice University
Day, Date & Time: Wednesday, September 30 at 6:30 pm (actual swift viewing will start around 7 pm)
Program Location: Meet at 6:30 pm at the Owl Deck to visit Rice’s Lenn R. Lowrey Arboretum. At 7:00 pm we will view the swifts at Tudor Fieldhouse. Parking Lot 6 will be available for our use, 6-8 pm. Google map of parking lot and surrounding area.
Registration: No registration required. This is a FREE drop-in program.
Bring: Binoculars, bug spray, folding chair, a water bottle, and a snack if you’d like.
Sponsored By: Houston Audubon, Nature Discovery Center, and Rice’s Lenn R. Lowrey Arboretum
Nationwide Swift Night Out
Sponsored by the Driftwood Wildlife Association, this is a nationwide event to help promote awareness of swifts. It is held annually in late summer. The procedure is very simple: find a large roost of Chimney Swifts and estimate the numbers that enter it in the evening. For more information, to report sightings, and to see a map of last year’s results, visit the Swift Night Out webpage.
Tips on Counting Swifts by Paul and Georgean Kyle: When counting Chimney Swifts at roosts, the numbers can become overwhelming — especially as the numbers continue to climb as we move toward fall migration over the next few weeks. What we have found to work quite well is to use an athletic lap counter. These are available at most sporting goods stores. You can tally without taking your eyes off of the swifts.
When the numbers of swifts are relatively low, a direct count can be made — one click per swift. At sites where the numbers exceed several hundred (or the entry rate is high), make one click per 10 swifts and multiply the end number of clicks by 10 for the total. It works really well if several counters can average their counts at the end.
