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Giving Chimney Swifts a Place to Live
Providing a home for the swifts in your neighborhood
© Jim Williams
Before chimneys existed, Chimney Swifts relied on old hollow trees for nesting and roosting. They can’t perch, they can only cling to a rough vertical surface. As developers cleared old growth forests, Chimney Swifts began using human-built structures. But building styles have changed, making traditional brick chimneys rarer. Pesticides have reduced the populations of swifts’ insect prey. People can help swifts by leaving brick or stone chimneys open from April to October and avoiding pesticides.
BirdNote®
Giving Chimney Swifts a Place to Live
Written by Conor Gearin
This is BirdNote.
[Chimney Swift calls]
What did Chimney Swifts do long ago, before chimneys existed?
[Chimney Swift calls]
Back then, there were many big, hollow trees for swifts to roost and build their nests inside. Swifts can’t perch with their tiny legs — they can only cling onto a rough vertical surface, like the inside of an old tree — or a brick chimney.
Over the last few centuries, land developers cut down old growth forests with large hollow trees. Chimney Swifts began using human-built structures, which probably gave their numbers a boost. But building styles have changed and traditional brick chimneys are becoming rarer. Flying insects, which swifts depend on for food, have dwindled due to pesticides.
[Chimney Swift calls]
Fortunately, we can provide habitat for swifts right in our neighborhoods. If you have a brick or stone chimney, you can allow swifts inside by keeping it open on top with the damper closed from April to October. Avoiding pesticides in gardens helps make sure swifts can find food.
You can also learn how to build a wooden tower designed for Chimney Swifts on our website, BirdNote dot org. I’m Michael Stein.
Support for BirdNote is provided by Claudia and Bert Toth, and generous listeners around the world.
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Producer: Mark Bramhill
Managing Editor: Jazzi Johnson
Managing Producer: Conor Gearin
Content Director: Jonese Franklin
Bird sounds provided by The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. Chimney Swift ML352831341 recorded by Mario Gervais.
BirdNote’s theme was composed and played by Nancy Rumbel and John Kessler.
© 2024 BirdNote March 2024
Narrator: Michael Stein
ID# CHSW-03-2024-03-04 CHSW-03
Reference:
https://www.wiswifts.org/how-can-i-help/
https://nc.audubon.org/news/make-your-chimney-swift-friendly
https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/chiswi/cur/introduction
https://apnews.com/general-news-f52138468e5042b9b84b8ed37674b75c
Conor Gearin
Writer