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--Apple-Mail=_4024D6CF-B8B4-4C8D-91C4-9C3903A35CCE Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Type: text/plain; charset=windows-1252 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=92s 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=92t heard this = from me, that back in the =93good old days=94, 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 =93saving=94 = 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 =93show=94 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=92s 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 =93sleep in=94 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=92m very = happy we blundered into today=92s exit. =20 >=20 > Cheers from Jim in Wolfville. --Apple-Mail=_4024D6CF-B8B4-4C8D-91C4-9C3903A35CCE Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Type: text/html; charset=windows-1252 <html><head><meta http-equiv=3D"Content-Type" content=3D"text/html = charset=3Dwindows-1252"></head><body style=3D"word-wrap: break-word; = -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: = after-white-space;"><br><div><br><div>Begin forwarded message:</div><br = class=3D"Apple-interchange-newline"><blockquote type=3D"cite"><div = style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; = margin-left: 0px;"><span style=3D"font-family:'Helvetica'; color:rgba(0, = 0, 0, 1.0);"><b>From: </b></span><span = style=3D"font-family:'Helvetica';">Jim Wolford <<a = href=3D"mailto:jimwolford@eastlink.ca">jimwolford@eastlink.ca</a>><br><= /span></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; = margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px;"><span = style=3D"font-family:'Helvetica'; color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 1.0);"><b>Subject: = </b></span><span style=3D"font-family:'Helvetica';"><b>109+ swifts = EXITS, July 6/14, Robie Tufts N.Ctr., Wolfville, 8:40 = a.m.</b><br></span></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: = 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px;"><span = style=3D"font-family:'Helvetica'; color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 1.0);"><b>Date: = </b></span><span style=3D"font-family:'Helvetica';">July 6, 2014 at = 11:23:34 AM ADT<br></span></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; = margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px;"><span = style=3D"font-family:'Helvetica'; color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 1.0);"><b>To: = </b></span><span style=3D"font-family:'Helvetica';"><a = href=3D"mailto:jimwolford@eastlink.ca">jimwolford@eastlink.ca</a><br></spa= n></div><br><div><meta http-equiv=3D"Content-Type" content=3D"text/html = charset=3Dwindows-1252"><div style=3D"word-wrap: break-word; = -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space;"><div = style=3D"margin: 0px;"><b>JULY 6, 2014 </b>- 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 <b>CHIMNEY SWIFTS WERE EXITING!! </b> 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 <b>8:40 a.m.</b>, under clear blue sky with warm = temperature and very windy conditions.</div><div style=3D"margin: 0px; = min-height: 14px;"><br></div><div style=3D"margin: 0px;">For those who = have not observed these <b>morning exits</b>, 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.</div><div = style=3D"margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br></div><div style=3D"margin: = 0px;">Pat & I sat patiently, a few car lengths from the chimney, and = counted them one by one. <b>Our total was about 109+ swifts. = </b></div><div style=3D"margin: 0px; min-height: = 14px;"><br></div><div style=3D"margin: 0px;">When I walked over to sign = up our observation, I saw that either yesterday=92s wind-storm or = vandals (likely the former) took all of <b>our observation sheets</b> = 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.</div><div style=3D"margin: 0px; min-height: = 14px;"><br></div><div style=3D"margin: 0px;">I might as well add here, = again for those who haven=92t heard this from me, that back in the =93good= old days=94, decades ago, back when I was younger and more patient and = tolerant of certain kinds of pain, I did a series of <b>morning = vigils</b> 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 = <b>exit data</b> from the cameras installed in the Middleton and New = Glasgow chimneys for the past few years.)</div><div style=3D"margin: = 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br></div><div style=3D"margin: 0px;">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?). = </div><div style=3D"margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br></div><div = style=3D"margin: 0px;">I recall <b>one occasion in 1989 or 1990</b>, = when I was a celebrity for a week and doing TV and radio interviews, = because of the local =93saving=94 of the RTNC chimney by the town and = the Blomidon Naturalists together. <b> CBC-TV </b>sent Paul Withers = and a cameraman, and one evening we watched and filmed the =93show=94 of = the swifts gathering and funneling into the chimney.</div><div = style=3D"margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br></div><div style=3D"margin: = 0px;">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.</div><div style=3D"margin: 0px; = min-height: 14px;"><br></div><div style=3D"margin: 0px;">Now here=92s 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 = =93sleep in=94 until 11 a.m. or even to noon. </div><div = style=3D"margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br></div><div style=3D"margin: = 0px;">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=92m very happy we blundered into today=92s exit. = </div><div style=3D"margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><div = style=3D"margin: 0px;"><br></div><div style=3D"margin: 0px;"><b>Cheers = from Jim in = Wolfville.</b></div></div></div></div></blockquote></div><br></body></html= >= --Apple-Mail=_4024D6CF-B8B4-4C8D-91C4-9C3903A35CCE--
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