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Thousands of Vaux's Swifts drop into the chimney at Frank Wagner Elementary in Monroe, Washington. This chimney is one of the largest known migratory roosting sites for the swifts.
During my lunch break I was told about a grounded Swift, near the electric fox fence on the grazing marsh.
Swifts are built for the air, spending their entire lives there, only touching down to build a nest. They spend the rest of their lives airborne.
The RSPB says: “Spends more time in flight than any other species and regularly sleeps on the wing at night when not nesting. Also feeds, drinks, gathers nest material and sometimes mates in flight.”
I went to the Wildside hide to have a look. At first I couldn't see anything but then glimpsed some flapping wings amongst the grass.
I scurried commando-style (not quite) out on to the marsh, trying not to disturb anything, and picked it up. It seemed dazed and weak, but I was amazed at how firmly it grasped my hand, with tiny, razor sharp little claws. I held my hand out to see if it would fly, but it just flopped onto the grass a couple of times. I could feel its tiny heart beating incredibly fast, probably from the stress of being on the ground. For such an aerial bird this stress would have been considerable. I decided it needed some care so took it back to the centre.
I looked online for some advice and found it at www.swift-conservation.org, the people who advised us about our Swift nest boxes that can be seen around the Observatory. They recommended putting it in a cardboard box on some paper towels, and leaving it in a cool, dark, quiet, safe place to recuperate.
I left it there for a couple of hours to calm down but its condition hadn’t changed much when I came back, and it seemed to be closing its eyes rather a lot. This was concerning as I’ve seen several birds in the past do this before they passed on.
One of our regular visitors, Martin, who also does moth trapping with us, was passing by so I asked him for any words of advice. I also asked him about the large tick I’d spotted at the back of the Swift’s neck. Martin, who works at the Natural History Museum, took out a test tube (no self-respecting entomologist is ever without one) and tried to coax the tick into the test tube.
Unsurprisingly, the tick was reluctant to be added to the collection, and scurried off around the Swift’s back. As we tried to nudge the tick off, the Swift became a lot more alert and started looking around. Slightly irritated at being disturbed from its doze in my hands, the Swift thought “Sod this!” and pushed itself out of my hands, took a couple of weak wing-beats, and was off to join its kind in the sky :-)
A U.S. Air Force C-130J Super Hercules and crew from Dyess Air Force Base, Texas wait to receive passengers at the Bydgoszcz Airport, Poland during Exercise Swift Response 16, June 8, 2016. Exercise SR16 is one of the premier military crisis response training events for multinational airborne forces in the world, the exercise has more than 5,000 participants from 10 NATO nations. (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Joseph Swafford/Released)
These birds are called Vaux's Swifts. During their fall migration, when they come through Portland, they roost in the chimney of the Chapman Elementary School in the Northwest neighborhood. At sunset over a thousand of the birds come to the chimney to sleep for the night. The sky fills with the birds, then they start swirling around the chimney, and begin funnelling down into it. Like a tornado. They actually sleep on the walls of the chimney. Every night during the first few weeks of September, hundreds of people come out and bring blankets and a picnic dinner to watch the birds come in. This shot was taken on 9/23 during the last week of their stop in Portland.
-So this is me swallowing my pride, standing up saying I'm sorry for that night, and I go back to December all the time- I'm kind of proud of this one...it's a little too busy with words though! Song - Back to December by Taylor Swift. Please don't take without my permission! Comments appreciated! :)
U.S. Army 173rd Airborne Brigade paratroopers conduct a static line jump during exercise Swift Response 16, June 7, 2016 at Ramstein Air Base, Germany. Swift Response is a joint, multinational-exercise designed to train the U.S. Global Response Force alongside high-readiness forces from Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Spain and the United Kingdom. The 173rd Airborne Brigade (Sky Soldiers) is the U.S. Army's Contingency Response Force in Europe, providing rapid forces to the United States European, Africa and Central Commands areas of responsibilities. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. DeAndre Curtiss/Released)
U.S. Soldiers assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division prepare to board a C-130 Hercules during Exercise Swift Response 16 at the Bydgoszcz Airport, Poland, June 9, 2016. Exercise SR16 is one of the premier military crisis response training events for multinational airborne forces in the world, the exercise has more than 5,000 participants from 10 NATO nations. (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Joseph Swafford/Released)
Charter flight by Swift Air Boeing 737 carrying the San Diego Padres to Oakland for a series against the San Francisco Giants.
The Swift River as seen from the covered bridge. Right around that bend, it meets up with the Saco River, which is where I was staying :-)
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U.S. Soldiers assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division exit a CH-47 Chinook helicopter during Exercise Swift Response 16 at the Bydgoszcz Airport, Poland, June 8, 2016. Exercise SR16 is one of the premier military crisis response training events for multinational airborne forces in the world, the exercise has more than 5,000 participants from 10 NATO nations. (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Joseph Swafford/Released)
Taylor Swift;
Palace of Auburn Hills;
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Taylor Swift
Speak Now World Tour
June 4, 2011
Amway Center
Orlando, FL
© Katelyn Prieboy/Low Lite Photography
All Rights Reserved
All photographs can not be used unless with my express written permission.
A German Army paratrooper packs his parachute after jumping into Bunker Drop Zone at Grafenwoehr, Germany, June 15, 2016, during Exercise Swift Response 16.
Exercise Swift Response is one of the premier military crisis response training events for multi-national airborne forces in the world. The exercise is designed to enhance the readiness of the combat core of the U.S. Global Response Force - currently the 82nd Airborne Division's 1st Brigade Combat Team - to conduct rapid-response, joint-forcible entry and follow-on operations alongside Allied high-readiness forces in Europe. Swift Response 16 includes more than 5,000 Soldiers and Airmen from Belgium, France, Germany, Great Britain, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Spain and the United States and takes place in Poland and Germany, May 27-June 26, 2016.
(U.S. Army photo by Visual Information Specialist Markus Rauchenberger/released)
Taylor Swift
Speak Now World Tour
June 4, 2011
Amway Center
Orlando, FL
© Katelyn Prieboy/Low Lite Photography
All Rights Reserved
All photographs can not be used unless with my express written permission.
One of the ex Blackpool Swifts lies at the back of Stoniers garage in the company of SCO427L the ex Plymouth National.
The former Swift Co. plant in Wilson is shown in an aerial photograph from the Times archives. The Wilson Times is publishing historical photos of Wilson County life and landmarks in this space each day. To share your snapshots, email the picture and caption to Lori Parrish at lori@wilsontimes.com with the subject line Remember When or bring it to the Times office at 2001 Downing St. SW during regular business hours.
Supermarine Swift F.4 WK198 fuselage in March 2017 at Brooklands. On 26th September 1953, flown by Vickers-Supermarine test pilot Mike Lithgow, this aircraft made a record breaking flight, raising the world absolute speed record to 737.7 mph in Libya.
The Swift is seen here in outside storage prior to being moved into the new Aircraft Factory exhibition inside the Museum's grade II listed “Bellman” hangar. The Brooklands Bellman hanger is the only remaining example of four originally built on the site and was constructed in 1940. During WWII it was used for final assembly of Wellingtons and Warwick’s.
In 2015 the Museum received a £4.6 million grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund for improvements. The project included moving the Bellman Hangar off the Finishing Straight and restoring it nearby.
1960s Swift price list. What surprised me is that the Swift Vulcan was actually dearer than the Audubon. Now I have them both, the Vulcan is a nice binocular but just one look at the build quality of both tells me that that no way could the Vulcan have been more expensive to make than the Audubon surely?
Very nice Swift Skipper, rubber eye cups, good wide FOV, nice comfortable easy viewing, on the heavy side, but a lovely glass to use.
A C-130J Super Hercules from Little Rock Air Force Base, Arkansas takes off from the Bydgoszcz Airport, Poland during Exercise Swift Response 16, June 8, 2016. Exercise SR16 is one of the premier military crisis response training events for multinational airborne forces in the world, the exercise has more than 5,000 participants from 10 NATO nations. (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Joseph Swafford/Released)