User:Doctree/sandbox/Chimney Swift

The Chimney Swift (Chaetura pelagica) is a small bird of the Swift family Apodidae. Although they superficially resemble swallows and were once incorrectly identified as Chimney Swallows or House Swallows, Chimney Swifts are more closely related to hummingbirds. Except when on a nest or roosting in a chimney, they fly continuously while eating, drinking, bathing and collecting nest material. They cling to vertical surfaces and are incapable of perching like passerine birds such as swallows.

Chimney Swifts breed in North America and migrate to northwestern South America either through Central America or over the Gulf of Mexico, stopping to rest in Cuba or Jamica. They build a nest of twigs glued to a protected vertical surface with sticky saliva. A chimney or similar masonry structure such as an abandoned silo or air shaft is their usual nest site. Chimney Swift nests can also be seen attached to the interior walls of buildings with openings in the roof, and inside stone lined wells. These swifts congregate in large flocks that roost together before starting migration.

Chimney Swifts adapted well to urbanization. They are common in urban and suburban areas. For centuries, they have

The overall populations of Chimney Swifts declined steadily since 1960. Because the decline continued, the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) changed the status of Chaetura pelagica from least threatened to near threatened in 2011. The IUCN cited loss of nesting and roost sites as the greatest threat.

Taxonomy
The scientific classification of the Chimney Swift (Chaetura pelagica) is derived from its physical characteristics. The family name Apodidae comes from the Ancient Greek απους, apous, meaning "without feet." In flight, a Chimney Swift's feet are not visible. Their short legs and unusual feet are well adapted to clinging to vertical surfaces but make perching impossible. The genus name is from the Greek khaite for long hair and oura for tail, referring to the pointed barbs on the ends of a swift's tail feathers. The Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy did not propose a change for the Chimney Swift.

Etymology
The origin of the species name is uncertain. The Latin word pelagica comes from the Greek word pelagos, πέλαγος (deep or open sea; the main) but the Chimney Swift is not a sea bird. One author reports speculation that Carl Linnaeus intended to use Pelasgi, a nomadic tribe of ancient Greece, because the swifts constantly move over long distances. Linnaeus classified the Chimney Swift as Hirundo pelagica in 1758, altered to Hirundo plasgia in 1766 and later changed to Chaetura pelagica, the current name consistently used since 1886.

Early written records by European settlers in North America referred to the Chimney Swift as Troculus, Diveling, Aculeated Swallow, House Swallow, Chimney-bird and Chimney Swallow. Thomas Jefferson called Chimney Swifts American Swallows. Audubon gave American Spine-tail, Chimney Swallow, and American swift as common names in 1839. Chimney Swift became the common name for Chaetura pelagica only after the American Ornithologists' Union published the first Checklist of North American Birds in 1886. Careful reading of bird descriptions was necessary to determine what species was the subject of writings in colonial America.

Description
pamprodactyl feet, meaning that all four toes are in front.

spiked feathers on tail / sharp naked tips to the tail quills

"cigar shaped" body (Audobon?)

Swept-back wings

weight and length (body and wings)

Similar species

 * Vaux's Swift (Chaetura vauxi)
 * Grey-rumped Swift (Chaetura Comereovemtros)
 * Ashy-tailed Swift (Chaetura andrei meridionalis)

Distribution
The breeding range of Chimney Swifts was limited to the forests east of the Mississippi River before European settlers arrived in North America. Chimney Swifts roosted and nested in large hollow trees, typically Sycamore snags. As forests were cleared for farming and European houses were constructed with masonry chimneys, Chimney Swifts quickly adapted to use chimneys for nesting.

In the twenty-first century, Chimney Swifts moved into California where "fair numbers" nested and fledged young.

Migration
multiple routes; primary

Breeding
Include: glutaneous saliva
 * Site suitability
 * Site selection
 * Site fidelity

Feeding
obligate aerial insectivore

on the fly

insect species ingested

quantities (1/3 body weight each plus what's fed to hatchlings/nestlings)

Threats and Survival
habitat and breeding site loss

weather

huddling when cold

predators not great problem

Relationship to humans
When European settlers first arrived in North America, Chimney Swifts nested in hollow trees

Status
Canada added Chimney Swifts to the species at risk list in April 2007. Assessment by Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) states that Chimney Swift populations "declined by almost 30% over the last three generations (13.5 years) and the area it occupies has declined by a third over the same time period". COSEWIC estimated that fewer than 12,000 Chimney Swifts returned to Canada for the 2011 nesting season.

Added to International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List in 2010.

Conservation
artificial chimneys and nesting towers

Towers as Eagle Scout service project