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I guess that building swift roosts has already been done! See: http://www.concentric.net/~Dwa/page6.html On May 23, 2008, at 9:37 AM, Paul S. Boyer wrote: > I think that the problem might be that bunches of individual birds > might go through at once, getting lumped together as a single count. > > A more accurate way might be simply to take a digital video of the > birds (if there is enough light — or try IR), and then sit down and > count frame-by-frame, using that most marvelous of cybernetic > devices, the human brain. It might seem tedious to some, but after > all, looking at birds is the game. > > Audubon wrote an account of a large, hollow tree used by thousands > of swifts. Since reading that years ago, I have always wondered if > one could not build a swift nesting-facility or "dedicated chimney," > just for the birds. > > > On May 22, 2008, at 8:01 PM, David & Alison Webster wrote: > >> I may have broached this previously but I wonder if some scrap >> electronic parts could be combined to produce an event (i.e. bird >> passing through) counter. Does someone on the list happen to have a >> hoard of electronic scrap and know-how (time to burn would help >> also) ? >> Yt, DW >> >> James W. Wolford wrote: >> >>> "Counting" is a ball-park guess by counting by tens approximately >>> as they descend into the chimney. Imagine the difficulty when >>> there are 2300, 500, 900!! (which we had once back in 1989? in >>> Wolfville). Counting less than 100 is quite easy, and even up to >>> 300 or so when they go in gradually. It's on nights when all the >>> entries are at once that you have a severe challenge! It also >>> helps to have more than one observer, and then take the average. >>> >>> Marg, I'd like to know more about what you said about the church >>> in Liverpool. Can you provide dates and more info' on how the >>> access to the chimney was prevented? >>> >>> >>> Thanks from Jim in Wolfville >>> >>> Begin forwarded message: >>> >>> >>>> From: "Margaret E.Millard" <mmillard@eastlink.ca <mailto:mmillard@eastlink.ca >>>> > > >>>> >>>> Date: May 22, 2008 10:32:21 AM ADT >>>> >>>> To: naturens@chebucto.ns.ca <mailto:naturens@chebucto.ns.ca> >>>> >>>> Subject: Re: [NatureNS] 81 chimney swifts in Wolfville May 20/08 >>>> >>>> Reply-To: naturens@chebucto.ns.ca <mailto:naturens@chebucto.ns.ca> >>>> >>>> >>>> I am so glad to hear about the swifts. I used to sit on the >>>> veranda rail at home and watch them circle around and around then >>>> funnel down into the chimney at the church behind my >>>> grandmother's house in Liverpool. When the chimney was made >>>> inaccessible, I was outraged and so disappointed even as a child. >>>> >>>> Question? How does one count that many birds? Is it close to an >>>> actual count, as you say here, or a guestimate from experience? I >>>> see four birds, I can count them, I see 10 I know I am recounting >>>> and then after that I sort of figure this many........mourning >>>> doves are the exception around here. They line up and lay around. >>>> >>>> http://margmillard.ca >>>> >>>> ----- Original Message ----- From: "James W. Wolford" < jimwolford@eastlink.ca >>>> <mailto:jimwolford@eastlink.ca> > >>>> >>>> To: <naturens@chebucto.ns.ca <mailto:naturens@chebucto.ns.ca> >>>> >;Sent: Wednesday, May 21, 2008 1:40 AM >>>> >>>> Subject: [NatureNS] 81 chimney swifts in Wolfville May 20/08 >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>>> MAY 20, 2008 - Harold Forsyth and I checked out the CHIMNEY >>>>> SWIFTS at >>>>> >>>>> dusk at Wolfville's Robie Tufts Nature Centre, observing there >>>>> from >>>>> >>>>> 8:30 to 9:05 p.m. (Sunset time 8:41). Again the swifts flew >>>>> about >>>>> >>>>> for a long time before the substantial flock of 80 SWIFTS all >>>>> went in >>>>> >>>>> at 9:00. Then a single laggard swift entered the chimney by >>>>> itself >>>>> >>>>> at 9:03 after some very erratic manoeuvers in the air. Thus we >>>>> had a >>>>> >>>>> seemingly accurate TOTAL OF 81 SWIFTS. If memory serves, and >>>>> since >>>>> >>>>> we are early in the migration period, this number bodes well for >>>>> >>>>> having substantially more swifts this year than our best totals >>>>> for >>>>> >>>>> one night of about 80 for the past two seasons (and Hurricane >>>>> Wilma >>>>> >>>>> of late autumn of 2005 gets the blame. >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Cheers from Jim in Wolfville, 542-9204 >>>>> >>>>> >>>> >>> >> >> >
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