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{font- This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_16C5_01CF9E14.A205FE30 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Hi Donna & All, July 12, 2014 Quoting your e-mail of July 11-- "The potential of launching a citizen science project on verifying the = presence of chimney swift nests on the walls of barns and out-buildings = has been discussed and may take off one day. "=20 This sounds like an excellent idea. The fact that they are using old = barns in East Dalhousie & Cherryfield, where I would suppose there are = lots of old trees nearby, suggests to me that natural nesting sites are = not as abundant as Rick indicated in 2012. -- May 4, 2012; "I know our Swifts are in trouble but I'm not convinced = that nesting sites is the primary concern, speaking strictly about NS. Rick Whitman" Wooden barns and lumberman's shanties will become less common over = time so I continue to wonder if it would not be desirable to experiment = with low-budget artificial nesting sites. If numbers in communal roosts = during the nesting period are more than trivial would this not indicate = a shortage of nesting sites, at least i the vicinity of the communal = roost ?=20 Yt, Dave Webster, Kentville ----- Original Message ----- =20 From: Donna Crossland=20 To: naturens@chebucto.ns.ca=20 Sent: Friday, July 11, 2014 10:49 PM Subject: [NatureNS] chimney swift nests-check your barns! Hi Jim and all: =20 This evening I discovered chimney swifts nesting once again in my = parents' barn hay loft in East Dalhousie. About a month ago I saw a = pair of swifts flying very low over the house and barn. We used to have = chimney swifts nesting on the wall of our barn hay loft over several = years (as Jim knows, since he visited them and observed them often), but = the last couple of years the hayloft window was closed. This year I = was prompted to have the window reopened when I saw the swifts seemingly = scouting out the area. =20 =20 On the way home this evening, I checked another barn in neighbouring = Cherryfield, and was informed about a swift nest on that hayloft wall = that contained eggs last week, now hatched! I know of at least two = other barns last year in the vicinity that contained chimney swift nests = last year. I have no news on those other barns yet this year, but will = investigate. It seems that July, rather than June, is the month when = Chimney swifts consistently get down to nesting. As Jim has previously = pointed out, those swifts roosting in town chimneys right now are = clearly not "parents"! =20 The potential of launching a citizen science project on verifying the = presence of chimney swift nests on the walls of barns and out-buildings = has been discussed and may take off one day. Meanwhile, having folks = check out old barns where birds may have access to haylofts would be a = fascinating preliminary endeavour. The swifts like to place their nest = high up on barn walls, the tiny sticks "glued" (with spit, ha!) to rough = barn boards. The tiny nests can be difficult to spot without a = flashlight! =20 It would be great if other naturalists on this list would check out = old barns right now. Where else are chimney swifts nesting? =20 =20 Donna Crossland =20 =20 =20 From: naturens-owner@chebucto.ns.ca = [mailto:naturens-owner@chebucto.ns.ca] On Behalf Of Jim Wolford Sent: July-08-14 2:46 PM To: naturens Subject: [NatureNS] 109+ swifts EXITS [long], July 6/14, Robie Tufts = N.Ctr., Wolfville, 8:40 a.m. =20 =20 =20 Begin forwarded message: From: Jim Wolford <jimwolford@eastlink.ca> Subject: 109+ swifts EXITS, July 6/14, Robie Tufts N.Ctr., Wolfville, = 8:40 a.m. Date: July 6, 2014 at 11:23:34 AM ADT To: jimwolford@eastlink.ca =20 JULY 6, 2014 - With our power still out from yesterday, Pat & I drove = into downtown Wolfville for coffee to go with our breakfast cereal, but = nobody in town had power. However, we chanced to go by the Robie Tufts = Nature Centre chimney just when the CHIMNEY SWIFTS WERE EXITING!! Pat = was the one who noticed this,so we turned around and sat in the parking = lot to watch and count them, knowing that we had probably missed some = before our start, which was at 8:40 a.m., under clear blue sky with warm = temperature and very windy conditions. =20 For those who have not observed these morning exits, the swifts come = out in little bursts of 1 to 5 or more swifts at a time, and each swift = pops out just over the rim and then out horizontally, not upward. The = bursts go in all directions, each swift dropping a bit at first and then = accelerating outward horizontally and out of sight, generally not = lingering in the area of the chimney. Also, usually all of the exits = occur within a few minutes of the beginning. =20 Pat & I sat patiently, a few car lengths from the chimney, and counted = them one by one. Our total was about 109+ swifts. =20 =20 When I walked over to sign up our observation, I saw that either = yesterday's wind-storm or vandals (likely the former) took all of our = observation sheets away, leaving only one sheet to salvage. Luckily, I = have all the former information on the sheets copied in various e-mails = and in this journal, plus my ongoing 2014 summary of chimney swift = observations for the whole province. =20 I might as well add here, again for those who haven't heard this from = me, that back in the "good old days", decades ago, back when I was = younger and more patient and tolerant of certain kinds of pain, I did a = series of morning vigils to see the swifts exit, both at the RTNC and = University Hall chimneys. I must look up those dates and write up what = I found out about the exits. (Currently also the Maritime SwiftWatch = must have exit data from the cameras installed in the Middleton and New = Glasgow chimneys for the past few years.) =20 Basically, what I found out was that in most circumstances the swifts = emerge quite early in the morning. My vigils always began before first = light, and several times it happened that the first swift I detected was = not exiting but entering! (from where? and out for how long?). =20 =20 I recall one occasion in 1989 or 1990, when I was a celebrity for a = week and doing TV and radio interviews, because of the local "saving" of = the RTNC chimney by the town and the Blomidon Naturalists together. = CBC-TV sent Paul Withers and a cameraman, and one evening we watched and = filmed the "show" of the swifts gathering and funneling into the = chimney. =20 Then, maybe intentionally or because of the interview, Paul decided to = stay overnight and then hopefully film the morning exits. I guessed = the time for that at about 6 a.m.?, and, would you believe, out they = came right at the predicted time! I felt very powerful. The cameraman = got very good footage of this, but it was not part of the news report = that evening, and all that extra footage was erased by the time I = inquired about it a few days later. Lesson learned the hard way again. =20 Now here's a bit more on the morning exit times. The factors involved = are unknown, but usually the exits occur sometime from sunrise up to = about 9 a.m. (like this morning), but it is not uncommon for the swifts = to "sleep in" until 11 a.m. or even to noon. =20 =20 Now try to imagine the pain and patience involved in beginning at = about 5:00 a.m., sitting in my car with a thermos of coffee, and just = sitting and watching the top of the chimney, waitng for some action, = until the end of the morning! YIPE! Nope, never again, so I'm very = happy we blundered into today's exit. =20 =20 Cheers from Jim in Wolfville. =20 No virus found in this message. Checked by AVG - www.avg.com Version: 2014.0.4716 / Virus Database: 3986/7829 - Release Date: = 07/10/14 ------=_NextPart_000_16C5_01CF9E14.A205FE30 Content-Type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable <!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN"> <HTML xmlns=3D"http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40" xmlns:v =3D=20 "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:vml" xmlns:o =3D=20 "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" xmlns:w =3D=20 "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:word" xmlns:m =3D=20 "http://schemas.microsoft.com/office/2004/12/omml"><HEAD> <META content=3D"text/html; charset=3Diso-8859-1" = http-equiv=3DContent-Type> <META name=3DGENERATOR content=3D"MSHTML 8.00.6001.23588"> <STYLE>@font-face { font-family: Helvetica; } @font-face { font-family: Cambria Math; } @font-face { font-family: Calibri; } @font-face { font-family: Tahoma; } @page WordSection1 {size: 612.0pt 792.0pt; margin: 72.0pt 72.0pt 72.0pt = 72.0pt; } P.MsoNormal { MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; FONT-FAMILY: "Times New Roman","serif"; FONT-SIZE: = 12pt } LI.MsoNormal { MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; FONT-FAMILY: "Times New Roman","serif"; FONT-SIZE: = 12pt } DIV.MsoNormal { MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; FONT-FAMILY: "Times New Roman","serif"; FONT-SIZE: = 12pt } A:link { COLOR: blue; TEXT-DECORATION: underline; mso-style-priority: 99 } SPAN.MsoHyperlink { COLOR: blue; TEXT-DECORATION: underline; mso-style-priority: 99 } A:visited { COLOR: purple; TEXT-DECORATION: underline; mso-style-priority: 99 } SPAN.MsoHyperlinkFollowed { COLOR: purple; TEXT-DECORATION: underline; mso-style-priority: 99 } P.MsoAcetate { MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; FONT-FAMILY: "Tahoma","sans-serif"; FONT-SIZE: = 8pt; mso-style-priority: 99; mso-style-link: "Balloon Text Char" } LI.MsoAcetate { MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; FONT-FAMILY: "Tahoma","sans-serif"; FONT-SIZE: = 8pt; mso-style-priority: 99; mso-style-link: "Balloon Text Char" } DIV.MsoAcetate { MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; FONT-FAMILY: "Tahoma","sans-serif"; FONT-SIZE: = 8pt; mso-style-priority: 99; mso-style-link: "Balloon Text Char" } SPAN.BalloonTextChar { FONT-FAMILY: "Tahoma","sans-serif"; mso-style-priority: 99; = mso-style-link: "Balloon Text"; mso-style-name: "Balloon Text Char" } SPAN.EmailStyle19 { FONT-FAMILY: "Calibri","sans-serif"; COLOR: #1f497d; mso-style-type: = personal-reply } .MsoChpDefault { FONT-SIZE: 10pt; mso-style-type: export-only } DIV.WordSection1 { page: WordSection1 } </STYLE> <!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:shapedefaults v:ext=3D"edit" spidmax=3D"1026" /> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:shapelayout v:ext=3D"edit"> <o:idmap v:ext=3D"edit" data=3D"1" /> </o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--></HEAD> <BODY lang=3DEN-CA link=3Dblue bgColor=3D#ffffff vLink=3Dpurple> <DIV><SPAN=20 style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; FONT-SIZE: = 11pt">Hi=20 Donna & All, = = =20 July 12,=20 2014</SPAN></DIV> <DIV><SPAN=20 style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; FONT-SIZE: = 11pt"> =20 Quoting your e-mail of July 11--</SPAN></DIV> <DIV><SPAN=20 style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; FONT-SIZE: = 11pt">"The=20 potential of launching a citizen science project on verifying the = presence of=20 chimney swift nests on the walls of barns and out-buildings has been = discussed=20 and may take off one day. " </SPAN></DIV> <DIV><SPAN=20 style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; FONT-SIZE: = 11pt"></SPAN> </DIV> <DIV><SPAN=20 style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; FONT-SIZE: = 11pt"> =20 This sounds like an excellent idea. The fact that they are using old = barns in=20 East Dalhousie & Cherryfield, where I would suppose there are lots = of old=20 trees nearby, suggests to me that natural nesting sites are not as = abundant as=20 Rick indicated in 2012. --</SPAN></DIV> <DIV><SPAN=20 style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; FONT-SIZE: = 11pt"> =20 May 4, 2012; "<FONT color=3D#000000 size=3D3>I know our Swifts are in = trouble but=20 I'm not convinced that nesting<BR>sites is the primary concern, speaking = strictly about NS.<BR>Rick Whitman"</FONT><BR></SPAN></DIV> <DIV><SPAN=20 style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; FONT-SIZE: = 11pt"><FONT=20 color=3D#000000 size=3D3 face=3DArial> Wooden barns = and lumberman's=20 shanties will become less common over time so I continue to wonder if it = would=20 not be desirable to experiment with low-budget artificial nesting = sites.=20 </FONT></SPAN><SPAN=20 style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; FONT-SIZE: = 11pt"><FONT=20 color=3D#000000 size=3D3 face=3DArial>If numbers in communal roosts = during the nesting=20 period are more than trivial would this not indicate a shortage of = nesting=20 sites, at least i the vicinity of the communal roost ? = </FONT></SPAN></DIV> <DIV><SPAN=20 style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; FONT-SIZE: = 11pt"><FONT=20 color=3D#000000 size=3D3 face=3DArial></FONT></SPAN> </DIV> <DIV><SPAN=20 style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; FONT-SIZE: = 11pt"><FONT=20 color=3D#000000 size=3D3 face=3DArial>Yt, Dave Webster, = Kentville</FONT></DIV></SPAN> <BLOCKQUOTE=20 style=3D"BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; = PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px"=20 dir=3Dltr> <DIV style=3D"FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message = ----- </DIV> <DIV=20 style=3D"FONT: 10pt arial; BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; font-color: = black"><B>From:</B>=20 <A title=3Ddcrossland@eastlink.ca = href=3D"mailto:dcrossland@eastlink.ca">Donna=20 Crossland</A> </DIV> <DIV style=3D"FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A = title=3Dnaturens@chebucto.ns.ca=20 href=3D"mailto:naturens@chebucto.ns.ca">naturens@chebucto.ns.ca</A> = </DIV> <DIV style=3D"FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Friday, July 11, 2014 = 10:49=20 PM</DIV> <DIV style=3D"FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> [NatureNS] chimney = swift=20 nests-check your barns!</DIV> <DIV><BR></DIV> <DIV class=3DWordSection1> <P class=3DMsoNormal><SPAN=20 style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; = FONT-SIZE: 11pt">Hi=20 Jim and all:<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P> <P class=3DMsoNormal><SPAN=20 style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; = FONT-SIZE: 11pt"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P> <P class=3DMsoNormal><SPAN=20 style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; = FONT-SIZE: 11pt">This=20 evening I discovered chimney swifts nesting once again in my = parents=92 barn hay=20 loft in East Dalhousie. About a month ago I saw a pair of swifts = flying=20 very low over the house and barn. We used to have chimney swifts = nesting=20 on the wall of our barn hay loft over several years (as Jim knows, = since he=20 visited them and observed them often), but the last couple of years = the=20 hayloft window was closed. This year I was prompted to = have the=20 window reopened when I saw the swifts seemingly scouting out the = area. =20 <o:p></o:p></SPAN></P> <P class=3DMsoNormal><SPAN=20 style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; = FONT-SIZE: 11pt"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P> <P class=3DMsoNormal><SPAN=20 style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; = FONT-SIZE: 11pt">On=20 the way home this evening, I checked another barn in neighbouring = Cherryfield,=20 and was informed about a swift nest on that hayloft wall that = contained eggs=20 last week, now hatched! I know of at least two other barns = last=20 year in the vicinity that contained chimney swift nests last = year. =20 I have no news on those other barns yet this year, but will=20 investigate. It seems that July, rather than June, is the month = when=20 Chimney swifts consistently get down to nesting. As Jim has = previously=20 pointed out, those swifts roosting in town chimneys right now are = clearly not=20 =93parents=94!<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P> <P class=3DMsoNormal><SPAN=20 style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; = FONT-SIZE: 11pt"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P> <P class=3DMsoNormal><SPAN=20 style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; = FONT-SIZE: 11pt">The=20 potential of launching a citizen science project on verifying the = presence of=20 chimney swift nests on the walls of barns and out-buildings has been = discussed=20 and may take off one day. Meanwhile, having folks check out old = barns=20 where birds may have access to haylofts would be a fascinating=20 preliminary endeavour. The swifts like to place their nest = high up=20 on barn walls, the tiny sticks =93glued=94 (with spit, ha!) to rough = barn=20 boards. The tiny nests can be difficult to spot = without a=20 flashlight!<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P> <P class=3DMsoNormal><SPAN=20 style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; = FONT-SIZE: 11pt"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P> <P class=3DMsoNormal><SPAN=20 style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; = FONT-SIZE: 11pt">It=20 would be great if other naturalists on this list would check out old = barns=20 right now. Where else are chimney swifts nesting? =20 <o:p></o:p></SPAN></P> <P class=3DMsoNormal><SPAN=20 style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; = FONT-SIZE: 11pt"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P> <P class=3DMsoNormal><SPAN=20 style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; = FONT-SIZE: 11pt">Donna=20 Crossland<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P> <P class=3DMsoNormal><SPAN=20 style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; = FONT-SIZE: 11pt"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P> <P class=3DMsoNormal><SPAN=20 style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; = FONT-SIZE: 11pt"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P> <P class=3DMsoNormal><SPAN=20 style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; COLOR: #1f497d; = FONT-SIZE: 11pt"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P> <DIV> <DIV=20 style=3D"BORDER-BOTTOM: medium none; BORDER-LEFT: medium none; = PADDING-BOTTOM: 0cm; PADDING-LEFT: 0cm; PADDING-RIGHT: 0cm; BORDER-TOP: = #b5c4df 1pt solid; BORDER-RIGHT: medium none; PADDING-TOP: 3pt"> <P class=3DMsoNormal><B><SPAN=20 style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: 'Tahoma','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 10pt"=20 lang=3DEN-US>From:</SPAN></B><SPAN=20 style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: 'Tahoma','sans-serif'; FONT-SIZE: 10pt" = lang=3DEN-US>=20 naturens-owner@chebucto.ns.ca [mailto:naturens-owner@chebucto.ns.ca] = <B>On=20 Behalf Of </B>Jim Wolford<BR><B>Sent:</B> July-08-14 2:46 = PM<BR><B>To:</B>=20 naturens<BR><B>Subject:</B> [NatureNS] 109+ swifts EXITS [long], July = 6/14,=20 Robie Tufts N.Ctr., Wolfville, 8:40 = a.m.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P></DIV></DIV> <P class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></P> <P class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></P> <DIV> <P class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></P> <DIV> <P class=3DMsoNormal>Begin forwarded message:<o:p></o:p></P></DIV> <P class=3DMsoNormal><BR><BR><o:p></o:p></P> <DIV> <P class=3DMsoNormal><B><SPAN=20 style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: 'Helvetica','sans-serif'">From: </SPAN></B><SPAN = style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: 'Helvetica','sans-serif'">Jim Wolford <<A=20 = href=3D"mailto:jimwolford@eastlink.ca">jimwolford@eastlink.ca</A>></SP= AN><o:p></o:p></P></DIV> <DIV> <P class=3DMsoNormal><B><SPAN=20 style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: 'Helvetica','sans-serif'">Subject: 109+ swifts = EXITS, July=20 6/14, Robie Tufts N.Ctr., Wolfville, 8:40 = a.m.</SPAN></B><o:p></o:p></P></DIV> <DIV> <P class=3DMsoNormal><B><SPAN=20 style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: 'Helvetica','sans-serif'">Date: </SPAN></B><SPAN = style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: 'Helvetica','sans-serif'">July 6, 2014 at = 11:23:34 AM=20 ADT</SPAN><o:p></o:p></P></DIV> <DIV> <P class=3DMsoNormal><B><SPAN style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: = 'Helvetica','sans-serif'">To:=20 </SPAN></B><SPAN style=3D"FONT-FAMILY: 'Helvetica','sans-serif'"><A=20 = href=3D"mailto:jimwolford@eastlink.ca">jimwolford@eastlink.ca</A></SPAN><= o:p></o:p></P></DIV> <P class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></P> <DIV> <DIV> <DIV> <P class=3DMsoNormal><B>JULY 6, 2014 </B>- With our power still out = from=20 yesterday, Pat & I drove into downtown Wolfville for coffee to go = with our=20 breakfast cereal, but nobody in town had power. However, we = chanced to=20 go by the Robie Tufts Nature Centre chimney just when the <B>CHIMNEY = SWIFTS=20 WERE EXITING!! </B> Pat was the one who noticed this,so we turned = around=20 and sat in the parking lot to watch and count them, knowing that we = had=20 probably missed some before our start, which was at <B>8:40 a.m.</B>, = under=20 clear blue sky with warm temperature and very windy=20 conditions.<o:p></o:p></P></DIV> <DIV> <P class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></P></DIV> <DIV> <P class=3DMsoNormal>For those who have not observed these <B>morning = exits</B>,=20 the swifts come out in little bursts of 1 to 5 or more swifts at a = time, and=20 each swift pops out just over the rim and then out horizontally, not=20 upward. The bursts go in all directions, each swift dropping a = bit at=20 first and then accelerating outward horizontally and out of sight, = generally=20 not lingering in the area of the chimney. Also, usually all of = the exits=20 occur within a few minutes of the beginning.<o:p></o:p></P></DIV> <DIV> <P class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></P></DIV> <DIV> <P class=3DMsoNormal>Pat & I sat patiently, a few car lengths from = the=20 chimney, and counted them one by one. <B>Our total was about = 109+=20 swifts. </B><o:p></o:p></P></DIV> <DIV> <P class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></P></DIV> <DIV> <P class=3DMsoNormal>When I walked over to sign up our observation, I = saw that=20 either yesterday=92s wind-storm or vandals (likely the former) took = all of=20 <B>our observation sheets</B> away, leaving only one sheet to = salvage. =20 Luckily, I have all the former information on the sheets copied in = various=20 e-mails and in this journal, plus my ongoing 2014 summary of chimney = swift=20 observations for the whole province.<o:p></o:p></P></DIV> <DIV> <P class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></P></DIV> <DIV> <P class=3DMsoNormal>I might as well add here, again for those who = haven=92t heard=20 this from me, that back in the =93good old days=94, decades ago, back = when I was=20 younger and more patient and tolerant of certain kinds of pain, I did = a series=20 of <B>morning vigils</B> to see the swifts exit, both at the RTNC and=20 University Hall chimneys. I must look up those dates and write = up what I=20 found out about the exits. (Currently also the Maritime = SwiftWatch must=20 have <B>exit data</B> from the cameras installed in the Middleton and = New=20 Glasgow chimneys for the past few years.)<o:p></o:p></P></DIV> <DIV> <P class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></P></DIV> <DIV> <P class=3DMsoNormal>Basically, what I found out was that in most = circumstances=20 the swifts emerge quite early in the morning. My vigils always = began=20 before first light, and several times it happened that the first swift = I=20 detected was not exiting but entering! (from where? and out for how = long?).=20 <o:p></o:p></P></DIV> <DIV> <P class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></P></DIV> <DIV> <P class=3DMsoNormal>I recall <B>one occasion in 1989 or 1990</B>, = when I was a=20 celebrity for a week and doing TV and radio interviews, because of the = local=20 =93saving=94 of the RTNC chimney by the town and the Blomidon = Naturalists=20 together. <B> CBC-TV </B>sent Paul Withers and a cameraman, and = one=20 evening we watched and filmed the =93show=94 of the swifts gathering = and funneling=20 into the chimney.<o:p></o:p></P></DIV> <DIV> <P class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></P></DIV> <DIV> <P class=3DMsoNormal>Then, maybe intentionally or because of the = interview, Paul=20 decided to stay overnight and then hopefully film the morning=20 exits. I guessed the time for that at about 6 a.m.?, and, would = you=20 believe, out they came right at the predicted time! I felt very=20 powerful. The cameraman got very good footage of this, but it = was not=20 part of the news report that evening, and all that extra footage was = erased by=20 the time I inquired about it a few days later. Lesson learned = the hard=20 way again.<o:p></o:p></P></DIV> <DIV> <P class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></P></DIV> <DIV> <P class=3DMsoNormal>Now here=92s a bit more on the morning exit = times. The=20 factors involved are unknown, but usually the exits occur sometime = from=20 sunrise up to about 9 a.m. (like this morning), but it is not uncommon = for the=20 swifts to =93sleep in=94 until 11 a.m. or even to noon.=20 <o:p></o:p></P></DIV> <DIV> <P class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></P></DIV> <DIV> <P class=3DMsoNormal>Now try to imagine the pain and patience involved = in=20 beginning at about 5:00 a.m., sitting in my car with a thermos = of=20 coffee, and just sitting and watching the top of the chimney, waitng = for some=20 action, until the end of the morning! YIPE! Nope, never = again, so=20 I=92m very happy we blundered into today=92s exit. = <o:p></o:p></P></DIV> <DIV> <DIV> <P class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></P></DIV> <DIV> <P class=3DMsoNormal><B>Cheers from Jim in=20 Wolfville.</B><o:p></o:p></P></DIV></DIV></DIV></DIV></DIV> <P class=3DMsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></P></DIV><A></A> <P align=3Dleft color=3D"#000000" avgcert??>No virus found in this=20 message.<BR>Checked by AVG - <A=20 href=3D"http://www.avg.com">www.avg.com</A><BR>Version: 2014.0.4716 / = Virus=20 Database: 3986/7829 - Release Date: = 07/10/14</P></BLOCKQUOTE></BODY></HTML> ------=_NextPart_000_16C5_01CF9E14.A205FE30--
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