Swift Night Out #2

Location update: The chimney for this Swift Night Out is located at the Masonic Temple Hall, 1630 Fourth Avenue North, across the street from the Carver Theater. The best place to view the chimney—and the location where we’ll meet up after dinner around 6:30 or 6:45—is the top of the parking deck on 5th Avenue North, between 17th and 18th Streets. To exit the deck, you’ll need some cash—usually around $2. Bring bills, as the machine doesn’t take coins, or park on the street and take the elevator up to the top level.

Swift Nights Out are back in Birmingham! Join us downtown as we enjoy the second of three summer evenings with one of our favorite urban birds, the Chimney Swift (Chaetura pelagica).

After these aerial acrobats have fledged their young and cleared out their nests, the entire North American population makes its way south to winter along the remote headwaters of the Amazon River. On their way there, they congregate in huge roosting flocks with as many as two or three thousand birds sharing a single chimney—numbers that make for a tremendous spectacle when they all pour into the tiny opening at once.

After meeting for dinner and conversation at Birmingham’s Fish Market, we’ll walk, carpool, or bicycle to one of downtown’s active swift chimneys.  Together, we’ll wait for sunset (7:04 p.m.), watch the swifts work themselves up into their nightly “swiftnado,” and then count the number of individuals who enter the roost. Best of all, the data we produce will help researchers at the Chimney Swift Conservation Association (chimneyswifts.org) get a better sense of trends in eastern swift populations and the effects of climate change on these birds’ annual migratory cycle.

The details

Dinner meetup is at 5:30 p.m. at The Fish Market (612 22nd St. S.). For more information about their menu, visit their website. There is a parking lot at the restaurant, but there should also be free after-hours parking on the street.

Which chimney we visit after dinner will depend on the work of our dedicated chimney swift scouting volunteers; they’ll spend part of August looking for active roosts and identifying the most convenient spots for viewing. Check back here for more details. This is especially important if you plan on skipping dinner and meeting us at the viewing location around 6:30 p.m.

Binoculars are handy, but certainly not necessary, for viewing the swifts as they assemble in the skies above the chimney. If you’re a social media user, we strongly encourage you to share your thoughts and photos with the hashtag #BhamSwiftnado.

We are excited to announce the Alabama Wildlife Center will be bringing young swifts they raised to release at this event!

Love swifts? Support our efforts to build chimney swift nesting towers throughout Birmingham.

The trip leader: Greg Harber leads this event; his cell phone number is 205-807-8055 (day of the event only).