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--Apple-Mail-1--62739324 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII; delsp=yes; format=flowed May 12, 2012 - N. AM. or N.S. MIGRATION COUNT -- After supper I went to downtown Wolfville's Robie Tufts Nature Centre (RTNC) to look for guessimate the numbers of roosting chimney swifts at dusk, which was very pretty tonight. Tonight I arrived earlier (8:15, Sunset 8:32 p.m.) than last evening, but Judy Tufts was already there and watching. She said she had seen up to 40 swifts by then, and that at 8:02 one swift dove into the chimney but then came back out quickly. Tonight was cool, 12 C., with a fairly light breeze (from southwest?). Sky was cloudy but it nearly completely cleared while we watched. There was a lovely Sunset, with a nice flock of nicely chittering swifts, and afterward Venus showed up in the WNW, fairly high, and very bright. My first swift entry into the chimney was at 8:35, and 4 more were in after another minute. By 8:40, just like last night, the show was mostly over, and about 5 more entered later, taking a few minutes. Judy and I watched separately from totally different angles; she was facing west, and it was NNW for me. From what I could see, I guessed she was having difficulty in distinguishing swifts entering the chimney versus those who passed closely by the chimney steeply and then circled at low altitude to rejoin the flying flock. As it turned out, Judy's count was 30 swifts higher than mine: my total was 66, and Judy's was 97, I think. I'm making it sound like I am right and she is not, but that is not my intent. Whenever we have more than a single count, we usually shrug and attempt to find a consensual average or mode. Tonight that average would be about 80 total swifts. One way to possibly check on how many went in, would be to return to the scene in very early morning (preferably before first light) and patiently wait there in a chair or in a car until the swifts decide to exit en masse (the wait can be very long, so do it with someone in order to spell yourselves off once in a while). Swifts that are leaving the top of a chimney are actually quite easy to count, since they come out in little bursts (like liquid boiling over in a beaker), and generally they all come out within a few minutes of each other. (It will be nice to be able to view Ally Manthorne's video of this from Middleton or New Glasgow?) Cheers from Jim and Judy in Wolfville --Apple-Mail-1--62739324 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Type: text/html; charset=US-ASCII <html><body style=3D"word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; = -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; "><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; = margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><font = face=3D"Arial" size=3D"4" style=3D"font: 13.0px Arial"><b>May 12, 2012 - = N. AM. or N.S. MIGRATION COUNT</b> -- </font></div><div = style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; = margin-left: 0px; "><font face=3D"Arial" size=3D"4" style=3D"font: = 13.0px Arial"><br></font></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; = margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><font = face=3D"Arial" size=3D"4" style=3D"font: 13.0px Arial">After supper I = went to downtown<b> Wolfville</b>'s Robie Tufts Nature Centre (RTNC) to = look for guessimate the numbers of <b>roosting chimney swifts</b> at = dusk, which was very pretty tonight. Tonight I arrived earlier = (8:15, Sunset 8:32 p.m.) than last evening, but <b>Judy Tufts</b> was = already there and watching. She said she had seen up to 40 swifts = by then, and that at 8:02 one swift dove into the chimney but then came = back out quickly.</font></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; = margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal = normal normal 13px/normal Arial; min-height: 15px; "><br></div><div = style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; = margin-left: 0px; "><font face=3D"Arial" size=3D"4" style=3D"font: = 13.0px Arial">Tonight was cool, 12 C., with a fairly light breeze (from = southwest?). Sky was cloudy but it nearly completely cleared while = we watched. There was a lovely Sunset, with a nice flock of nicely = chittering swifts, and afterward Venus showed up in the WNW, fairly = high, and very bright.</font></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; = margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal = normal normal 13px/normal Arial; min-height: 15px; "><br></div><div = style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; = margin-left: 0px; "><font face=3D"Arial" size=3D"4" style=3D"font: = 13.0px Arial">My<b> first swift entry</b> into the chimney was at 8:35, = and 4 more were in after another minute. By 8:40, just like last = night, the show was mostly over, and about 5 more entered later, taking = a few minutes.</font></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: = 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal = 13px/normal Arial; min-height: 15px; "><br></div><div style=3D"margin-top:= 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><font = face=3D"Arial" size=3D"4" style=3D"font: 13.0px Arial"><b>Judy and I = </b>watched separately from totally <b>different angles</b>; she was = facing west, and it was NNW for me. =46rom what I could see, I = guessed she was having <b>difficulty in distinguishing swifts</b> = entering the chimney versus those who passed closely by the chimney = steeply and then circled at low altitude to rejoin the flying = flock. As it turned out, Judy's count was 30 swifts higher than = mine: <b>my total was 66, and Judy's was 97</b>, I = think.</font></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; = margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal = 13px/normal Arial; min-height: 15px; "><br></div><div style=3D"margin-top:= 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><font = face=3D"Arial" size=3D"4" style=3D"font: 13.0px Arial">I'm making it = sound like I am right and she is not, but that is not my intent. = Whenever we have more than a single count, we usually shrug and attempt = to find a consensual average or mode. Tonight that <b>average = would be about 80 total swifts</b>.</font></div><div style=3D"margin-top: = 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: = normal normal normal 13px/normal Arial; min-height: 15px; = "><br></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; = margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><font face=3D"Arial" size=3D"4" = style=3D"font: 13.0px Arial">One<b> way to possibly check on how many = went in</b>, would be to return to the scene in very early morning = (preferably before first light) and patiently wait there in a chair or = in a car until the swifts decide to exit en masse (the wait can be very = long, so do it with someone in order to spell yourselves off once in a = while). Swifts that are leaving the top of a chimney are actually = quite easy to count, since they come out in little bursts (like liquid = boiling over in a beaker), and generally they all come out within a few = minutes of each other. (It will be nice to be able to view Ally = Manthorne's video of this from Middleton or New = Glasgow?)</font></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; = margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><font face=3D"Arial" size=3D"4" = style=3D"font: 13.0px Arial"><br></font></div><div style=3D"margin-top: = 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><font = face=3D"Arial" size=3D"4" style=3D"font: 13.0px Arial">Cheers from Jim = and Judy in Wolfville</font></div> </body></html>= --Apple-Mail-1--62739324--
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