Chimney Swift

(Chaetura pelagica)

Conservation  •  Description  •  Habitat  •  Ecology  •  Distribution  •  Taxonomy

Conservation Status

 

 

 

No Image Available
IUCN Red List

NT - Near Threatened

  
NatureServe

N5B - Secure Breeding

SNRB - Unranked Breeding

  
Minnesota

not listed

Species in Greatest Conservation Need

  

Description

The body is dark grayish-brown. The throat and chin are pale. Thay may appear black in silhouette against the sky, where they are most often seen.

The tail is square at the tip.

The wings are long and thin.

Size

Total length: 5″ to 5½″

Wingspan: 12″ to 13″

Voice

The call is a rapid, rolling, descending series of high chips lasting about three seconds. The chips can be so close together that they become an insect-like buzz.

Similar Species

 

Habitat

Mostly urban settings

Ecology

Migration

Mid-April to mid-October

Nesting

 

Food

 

Distribution

Occurrence

Abundant migrant and breeder

Maps

The Minnesota Ornithologists’ Union All Seasons Species Occurrence Map

Taxonomy

Class

Aves (birds)

Order

Apodiformes (swifts and hummingbirds)

Family

Apodidae (swifts)

Subfamily

Chaeturinae

Genus

Chaetura

Subordinate Taxa

 

Synonyms

Hirundo pelagica

Hirundo spec

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Slideshows

Chimney Swift (Chaetura pelagica)
Steve Arena

Chimney Swift
Bob Anderson

Chimney Swift
JMC Nature Photos

 

slideshow

 

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Other Videos

Chimney Swift (Apodidae: Chaetura pelagica) Over Water
Carl Barrentine

About

Uploaded on Aug 1, 2010

I was quite surprised to observe seven migrating chimney swifts flying low over (and even striking) the surface of this oxbow slough, off the Red River. I've observed swallows (i.e., Tree, Cliff, and Barn Swallows) feeding or drinking this way, but have never observed swifts exhibiting this behavior. Photographed at East Grand Forks, Minnesota (31 July 2010).

A Flock of Birds (Chimney Swifts) Roosts in a Chimney at Dusk
Dose of Dissonance

About

Published on Aug 24, 2016

The beautiful sights and sounds of a flock of chimney swifts (Chaetura pelagica) roosting in a chimney at dusk.

Enhance your mind & overcome your cognitive biases @ http://www.doseofdissonance.com/

Some information on chimney swifts and their behavior (source): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chimney_swift

This film was shot on the UNC Wilmington (UNCW) campus.

Quadcopter view of roosting Chimney Swifts
George Farnsworth

About

Published on Oct 7, 2014

Chimney Swifts flying into chimney of the Field House on campus of Xavier University on October 6th, 2014. Large numbers of swifts use this chimney as a communal roost during their fall migration. Special thanks to Jim Bergen for flying a quadcopter over the chimney for these shots.

First Flight Chimney Swift Release-Wild Bird Rehabilitation- Overland, Mo.
Bryan Prather

About

Uploaded on Aug 6, 2010

10 Chimney Swifts being released after being cared for since they were nestlings! Tower Grove Park, St. Louis City Missouri. www.wildbirdrehab.org

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/b... or send a letter to Creative Commons, 171 Second Street, Suite 300, San Francisco, California, 94105, USA.

Chimney Swifts @ Wild Bird Rehab- Overland, Mo.
Bryan Prather

About

Uploaded on Aug 4, 2010

Chimney Swifts given a second chance @ Wild Bird Rehabilitation. www.wildbirdrehab.org

 

Camcorder

 

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Morton Outcrops SNA

 

 

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Created: 3/1/2017

Last Updated:

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