{"id":3690,"date":"2014-06-30T08:39:48","date_gmt":"2014-06-30T12:39:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/?p=3690"},"modified":"2014-07-01T07:39:44","modified_gmt":"2014-07-01T11:39:44","slug":"help-study-swifts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/help-study-swifts\/","title":{"rendered":"Help Study Swifts"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"What bird is an aerialist, an acrobat, and the bird famously dubbed as \u201ca cigar with wings\u201d by Roger Tory Peterson? None other than the shape-shifting, enigmatic chimney swift. These unique birds spend their days entirely in flight day searching for food, only returning to our terrestrial realm to roost at night or rest.<\/p>\n

They are creatures of the sky or of dark caverns. They are also twittering fools:\u00a0their chattering echoes over urban streets from May through September. They are also in trouble.<\/p>\n

Data from across the US and Canada tells the same story, a story of a species declining across its range. Yet there is no clear answer to the simple question: \u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n

Taking Action<\/h3>\n

In order to learn more, Mass Audubon has teamed-up with Drs. Drew Vitz and Margaret Rubega, the respective State Ornithologists from Massachusetts and Connecticut to launch the Chimney Swift Project. The goal: To work on protecting the breeding and roosting sites, which are vital to the swift\u2019s survival.<\/p>\n

During the 43,000 hours spent surveying birds in Massachusetts for the\u00a0Breeding Bird Atlas 2<\/a>, not one nest or roost site was found in a natural cavity (think a big dead tree)\u2014they were all in chimneys. Swifts need big chimneys for roosting and small ones for nesting. The first step to answering the \u201cWhy?\u201d is to know where those nesting and roosting chimneys are located.<\/p>\n

Get Involved<\/h3>\n

This is where you come in. We need your help locating these swift nesting and roosting sites. All you have to do is pick a big chimney (one where you have seen swifts before is a great idea) anywhere in the United States, set up a chair, and watch the chimney for approximately 15 minutes before and after sunset. \u00a0Have a picnic, extend the evening dog walk, or simply enjoy a summer evening outside.<\/p>\n

Then, using our online reporting tool<\/a>, tell us if you saw swifts or no swifts. All data is important!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

What bird is an aerialist, an acrobat, and the bird famously dubbed as \u201ca cigar with wings\u201d by Roger Tory Peterson? None other than the shape-shifting, enigmatic chimney swift. These unique birds spend their days entirely in flight day searching for food, only returning to our terrestrial realm to roost at night or rest. They […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3690","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-get-involved"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3t87A-Xw","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":7875,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/the-most-notable-2016-bird-a-thon-sightings\/","url_meta":{"origin":3690,"position":0},"title":"The Most Notable 2016 Bird-a-thon Sightings","author":"Mass Audubon","date":"July 11, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"More than 700 birders on 24 teams participated in Bird-a-thon 2016 this May, recording a total of 270 species of birds. 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Highlighted below are some notable sightings as determined by Wayne Petersen, Director, Important\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Get Involved"","block_context":{"text":"Get Involved","link":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/category\/get-involved\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2016\/06\/White-faced-Ibis-Harry-Liggett-1024x678.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2016\/06\/White-faced-Ibis-Harry-Liggett-1024x678.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2016\/06\/White-faced-Ibis-Harry-Liggett-1024x678.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2016\/06\/White-faced-Ibis-Harry-Liggett-1024x678.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":17546,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.massaudubon.org\/yourgreatoutdoors\/bird-a-thon-for-all\/","url_meta":{"origin":3690,"position":1},"title":"Bird-a-thon for All","author":"Kaylin D.","date":"May 11, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"This year marks the 40th anniversary of Mass Audubon\u2019s annual fundraiser and birding competition, Bird-a-thon. 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