Ian and their friends have a pretty good group of students (and maybe faculty?) working with administration to try to get something done. Theyre tracking window strikes with species, counts, and which buildings are the cause. Sounds like majority of last nights were around the stadium, continuing after sun-up. There is also an iNat project going https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/unl-window-collisions if you want to contribute.
Judson, Lincoln
From: <NEBirds...> <NEBirds...> on behalf of flyingcarlini via groups.io <flyingcarlini...>
Date: Friday, October 2, 2026 at 14:29
To: <NEBirds...> <NEBirds...>
Subject: [NEBirds] window strike victims UNL campus
Hello birders,
Oh my god, Ian N.'s checklist from today at UNL Campus has a horrific number of window strike victims from last night's massive migration. Does anyone know if all these birds were next to the same or different buildings? Are they still there? SOMETHING needs to happen to prevent this carnage in the future!
Here's a link to Ian's checklist:
https://ebird.org/checklist/S398349951
Thanks Tobin and Brody for the reply and a huge thanks to everyone who is documenting this grim situation and attempting to mitigate it! It's shocking that 40 victim compilation pic is from a single building! Perhaps a story in the Daily Nebraskan featuring Ian's eye-opening pics would help to raise awareness to this plight and desperately needed action? Lincoln probably should join the national Lights Out campaign for nights with high migration numbers predicted on Birdcast as the night with this mass mortality event was.
-Shari Schwartz & John Carlini, Lincoln On Friday, October 2, 2026 at 03:43:38 PM CDT, Brody via groups.io <brodybiberdorf...> wrote:
This was all just memorial stadium. This is a photo Ian took of their camera roll after photographing all the birds.
The yellow rail is likely gone and should not be looked for. It was in a very dangerous spot where it could easily be spooked and fly into windows.
Here is the total tallyNashville warbler: 3Lincoln’s sparrow: 15Clay colored sparrow: 5swamp sparrow: 1Common yellowthroat: 4Chimney swift: 2orange crowned warbler: 5gray catbird: 1Virginia rail: 1Yellow rail: 1Sedge wren: 1mourning warbler: 1these are birds that were either dead or looked severely stunned/in decline because of a strike. just from last night at one building
On Fri, Oct 2, 2026, 2:29 PM flyingcarlini via groups.io <flyingcarlini...> wrote:
Hello birders,Oh my god, Ian N.'s checklist from today at UNL Campus has a horrific number of window strike victims from last night's massive migration. Does anyone know if all these birds were next to the same or different buildings? Are they still there? SOMETHING needs to happen to prevent this carnage in the future!Here's a link to Ian's checklist:https://ebird.org/checklist/S398349951 Shari Schwartz & John Carlini, Lincoln
Date: 10/3/26 6:27 pm From: cronakelsey via groups.io <cronakelsey...> Subject: [NEBirds] Bird Conservancy of the Rockies Banding Report - Wildcat Hills Station 9/29/2026 - 10/3/2026
Hello birders!
**
**
Checking in with a weekly report from the Wildcat Hills banding station. This week was windy and cold, but a few days with perfect weather let us break a record of total birds banded. I banded 198 birds this week of 21 different species, including one new species!
**
**
Red Crossbill: 76
Pine Siskin: 40
Cassin’s Finch: 15
Audubon’s Warbler: 14
House Finch: 12
Oregon Junco: 10
Red-breasted Nuthatch: 7
Ruby-crowned Kinglet: 3
White-crowned Sparrow (Gambel’s): 3
Spotted Towhee: 3
Evening Grosbeak: 3
Black-capped Chickadee: 2
Townsend’s Solitaire: 2
Orange-crowned Warbler: 2
Chipping Sparrow: 2
Lesser Goldfinch: 2
Pygmy Nuthatch: 1
White-winged Junco: 1 *new species*
**
**
The station had some visitors this week from three elementary schools who got to see some very busy banding days! The one new species banded this week was a White-winged Junco, and another exciting catch were three Evening Grosbeaks captured this morning! After closing the nets three to four more unbanded Evening Grosbeaks show up at the feeders. Lastly, a Sharp-shinned Hawk managed to get caught in the nets but was unbanded.
**
**
For the final week of banding at Wildcat Hills, the station will be open (weather permitting) 10/4 - 10/5 and 10/8 - 10/10. Nets will open at 6:45am and will close at 12:45pm. Come get your visits in while you can!
Date: 10/3/26 3:02 pm From: Kianna Burtle via groups.io <kiannaburtle...> Subject: [NEBirds] Chadron State Park Week 5 Banding Recap (9/29-10/3)
NEBirders,
It was a huge migration week for the area with many Townsend’s Solitaires and Ruby-crowned Kinglets moving through! However, the station was a bit slower because of some strong winds causing early closures. Next week is the last week the station will be open and I’m excited to see what birds will come next!
Here are this weeks totals:
Migration is at it’s peak so come by and see what birds are coming through! The station will be open this week Tuesday through Saturday (weather permitting) and is now located at the Campground trailhead across from the tennis court in Chadron State Park! Anyone is welcome to visit at any time while the nets are open from 6:40am-12:40pm (weather permitting), hope to see you there!
Kianna Burtle
Bander, Chadron State Park
Bird Conservancy of the Rockies
Date: 10/3/26 11:37 am From: Thomas Labedz via groups.io <telabedz...> Subject: Re: [NEBirds] window strike victims UNL campus
Campus Birders and others,
In the June 2020 Nebraska Bird Review I summarized window mortalities of 87
bird species on the UNL city campus. The paper is available on Digital
Commons (link below).
Over my many years at UNL I found it very, very difficult to get any but
the lowest levels of admin to even acknowledge there is a problem. There is
a transient population (students) on campus and I think the admin knows if
they can postpone action long enough the noisemakers will be gone. In my
paper I go building by building with descriptions of what is going on. This
situation is not unique to UNL, it occurs everywhere in the world, is
documented in many places, continues to be documented, and has likely
happened as far back as humans putting windows in buildings. My only
success, and I'm not really sure it wasn't already in play, was when I
suggested bird-safe glass on the new engineering building at 17th & Vine
and the engineering link to Nebraska Hall. Unfortunately, that glass was
installed only at second floor and up levels. The ground floor was left
with standard glass, fatal glass. While engineering was using bird-safe
glass, athletics was not when building at the same time. I was finding dead
birds before that construction was completed. A past impediment to getting
better designs was the arrogance of architects who didn't want anyone
interfering with their artistic creativity. Also, biology, ecology, and
many natural science classes are not required by architecture programs.
Thankfully, over the years, that has changed and research into bird-safe
glass has advanced enormously. There is no reason bird-safe glass can't be
considered for glass facades on buildings. That includes the upcoming
renovations of that great temple on campus, the temple where many Nebraskan
go to worship seven or eight times a year and seem very willing to
contribute a tithe. The athletic department seems to have deep pockets and
will likely only do what maximizes its profits. But yes, apply pressure.
I have dissected and prepared research specimens from over 1000 window
strike birds. Here is what happens as they die. NO, there are no broken
necks. Yes, there is severe concussion and interna-cranial brain bleeding.
Light hits that leave the birds active and alert likely will recover, that
is unless the campus cats get them first (they encourage campus cats with
feeding stations, but that's another bird death story). More severe hits
that do not kill the birds, birds leaning to one side, swollen eye(s),
unable to stand, or otherwise debilitated are likely undergoing a brain
bleed that is putting pressure on the brain. These likely will not survive
on their own, the pressure will continue to build until neural function
ceases. These likely will not do well in captive care either. But I am not
a veterinarian. This is a spectrum of injury and I think swamping wildlife
care facilities might increase pressure to change windows and reduce the
mortality. Really severe hits result in broken beaks, fractured skulls,
broken coracoids and sternum, and sometimes dislodged internal organs. Even
in these severe hits the neck does not break, it is held in an S shape in
flight and flexes with the impact.
I'm not great at using social media, but think it might help in gaining
awareness. As might linking with campus organizations at other schools to
bring collective pressure to the architects and construction companies. UNL
has administrative offices that approve and supervise construction on
campus. By isn't bird-safe glass required on all new and remodel work on
all campuses?
Thomas Labedz, Lincoln
PS - That yellow rail would have been a lifer for me, but not how I want to
see one.
On Sat, Oct 3, 2026 at 10:31 AM Moni via groups.io <musasz=
<neb.rr.com...> wrote:
> Horrible news from Memorial Stadium. Thanks for documenting it. Very
> important first step.
>
> Some other thoughts regarding getting the word out and changing light use
> on campus.
>
> How about getting those photos out on social media, including where they
> were killed. Make sure to include FB for the older folks.:) Would be good
> if we could figure out what to ask people to do??
>
> Sustain UNL is a campus group that had several students working on this
> issue last year. Might check with them. Write a letter and send it as a
> letter to the editor to the Daily Nebraskan and the Lincoln Journal-Star.
> I know that’s old school but old people still read the paper.
>
> Make an appointment with the AD. Talk to Matt Rhule. Research other
> campuses. There might be some great examples of lighting stadiums without
> harming migrating birds. It would take a group of us to do all these
> things. But who better than birders to do it. Count me in.
>
> Moni
>
> p.s. If I could get the photos and the list, I could send this on to
> Sustain UNL. I know at least one young woman there.
>
> On Oct 3, 2026, at 7:54 AM, flyingcarlini via groups.io <flyingcarlini=
> <yahoo.com...> wrote:
>
> Thanks Tobin and Brody for the reply and a huge thanks to everyone who is
> documenting this grim situation and attempting to mitigate it! It's
> shocking that 40 victim compilation pic is from a single building! Perhaps
> a story in the Daily Nebraskan featuring Ian's eye-opening pics would help
> to raise awareness for this plight and desperately needed action? Lincoln
> probably should join the national Lights Out campaign for nights with high
> migration numbers predicted on Birdcast as the night with this mass
> mortality event was.
>
> -Shari Schwartz & John Carlini, Lincoln
>
>
>
>
>
Date: 10/3/26 8:32 am From: Moni via groups.io <musasz...> Subject: Re: [NEBirds] window strike victims UNL campus
Horrible news from Memorial Stadium. Thanks for documenting it. Very important first step.
Some other thoughts regarding getting the word out and changing light use on campus.
How about getting those photos out on social media, including where they were killed. Make sure to include FB for the older folks.:) Would be good if we could figure out what to ask people to do??
Sustain UNL is a campus group that had several students working on this issue last year. Might check with them. Write a letter and send it as a letter to the editor to the Daily Nebraskan and the Lincoln Journal-Star. I know that’s old school but old people still read the paper.
Make an appointment with the AD. Talk to Matt Rhule. Research other campuses. There might be some great examples of lighting stadiums without harming migrating birds. It would take a group of us to do all these things. But who better than birders to do it. Count me in.
Moni
p.s. If I could get the photos and the list, I could send this on to Sustain UNL. I know at least one young woman there.
> On Oct 3, 2026, at 7:54 AM, flyingcarlini via groups.io <flyingcarlini...> wrote:
>
> Thanks Tobin and Brody for the reply and a huge thanks to everyone who is documenting this grim situation and attempting to mitigate it! It's shocking that 40 victim compilation pic is from a single building! Perhaps a story in the Daily Nebraskan featuring Ian's eye-opening pics would help to raise awareness for this plight and desperately needed action? Lincoln probably should join the national Lights Out campaign for nights with high migration numbers predicted on Birdcast as the night with this mass mortality event was.
>
> -Shari Schwartz & John Carlini, Lincoln
>
Date: 10/3/26 5:54 am From: flyingcarlini via groups.io <flyingcarlini...> Subject: Re: [NEBirds] window strike victims UNL campus
Thanks Tobin and Brody for the reply and a huge thanks to everyone who is documenting this grim situation and attempting to mitigate it! It's shocking that 40 victim compilation pic is from a single building! Perhaps a story in the Daily Nebraskan featuring Ian's eye-opening pics would help to raise awareness for this plight and desperately needed action? Lincoln probably should join the national Lights Out campaign for nights with high migration numbers predicted on Birdcast as the night with this mass mortality event was.
This was all just memorial stadium. This is a photo Ian took of their
camera roll after photographing all the birds.
The yellow rail is likely gone and should not be looked for. It was in a
very dangerous spot where it could easily be spooked and fly into windows.
Here is the total tally
Nashville warbler: 3
Lincoln’s sparrow: 15
Clay colored sparrow: 5
swamp sparrow: 1
Common yellowthroat: 4
Chimney swift: 2
orange crowned warbler: 5
gray catbird: 1
Virginia rail: 1
Yellow rail: 1
Sedge wren: 1
mourning warbler: 1
these are birds that were either dead or looked severely stunned/in decline
because of a strike. just from last night at one building
On Fri, Oct 2, 2026, 2:29 PM flyingcarlini via groups.io <flyingcarlini=
<yahoo.com...> wrote:
> Hello birders,
> Oh my god, Ian N.'s checklist from today at UNL Campus has a horrific
> number of window strike victims from last night's massive migration. Does
> anyone know if all these birds were next to the same or different
> buildings? Are they still there? SOMETHING needs to happen to prevent
> this carnage in the future!
> Here's a link to Ian's checklist:
> https://ebird.org/checklist/S398349951 >
> Shari Schwartz & John Carlini, Lincoln
>
>
Date: 10/2/26 12:56 pm From: Tobin Brown via groups.io <tobinjbrown...> Subject: Re: [NEBirds] window strike victims UNL campus
From discussions on Discord, these were all at or around Memorial Stadium
(which keeps its lights on all night for some reason!). The UNL Bird Club
is currently contacting maintenance staff and athletic department staff to
address this. I won't speak for them, but I'm sure they will work hard to
attempt to fix this issue.
On Fri, Oct 2, 2026 at 2:29 PM flyingcarlini via groups.io <flyingcarlini=
<yahoo.com...> wrote:
> Hello birders,
> Oh my god, Ian N.'s checklist from today at UNL Campus has a horrific
> number of window strike victims from last night's massive migration. Does
> anyone know if all these birds were next to the same or different
> buildings? Are they still there? SOMETHING needs to happen to prevent
> this carnage in the future!
> Here's a link to Ian's checklist:
> https://ebird.org/checklist/S398349951 >
> Shari Schwartz & John Carlini, Lincoln
>
>
>
Hello birders,
Oh my god, Ian N.'s checklist from today at UNL Campus has a horrific number of window strike victims from last night's massive migration. Does anyone know if all these birds were next to the same or different buildings? Are they still there? SOMETHING needs to happen to prevent this carnage in the future!
Here's a link to Ian's checklist:
https://ebird.org/checklist/S398349951
Date: 10/1/26 10:19 am From: Gordon Warrick via groups.io <prubinus...> Subject: [NEBirds] flickers galore
With the first strong, cool north wind in a while, lots of flickers coming through (Valentine area). Males, females, yellow-shafted, red-shafted and hybrids. I particularly like the male hybrids with red front and aft.
On Thu, Oct 1, 2026 at 8:59 AM Rick Wright <birdaz...> wrote:
> The Crane Trust has one out their back door.
> Best wishes from Brittany,
>
> *Rick Wright, Birds and Art <https://ventbird.com/rick-wright> *tours
> with Victor Emanuel Nature Tours <https://ventbird.com/> >
> Books and book chapters
> <https://smile.amazon.com/Rick-Wright/e/B00HDUI4H6?ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1&qid=1637440375&sr=8-1> >
>
> HOMES: Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Erie, Superior
> SHAME: Superior, Huron, America, Michigan, Erie
>
>
>
> On Wed, Sep 30, 2026 at 10:23 PM Bill Kaempfer via groups.io
> <William.Kaempfer...> wrote:
>
>> It seems to me that I did see an artificial swift roost somewhere. It
>> was a hollow concrete tree stump with the outside painted to look like bark
>> and stood about 12-15 feet tall. Wisconsin maybe?
>>
>> Bill Kaempfer
>> Safety Harbor, FL
>>
>>
>> ------------------------------
>> *From:* <NEBirds...> <NEBirds...> on behalf of Don and
>> Shirley Maas via groups.io <snowbirds2012...>
>> *Sent:* Wednesday, September 30, 2026 2:52 PM
>> *To:* Nebirds <NEBirds...>
>> *Subject:* Re: [NEBirds] Chimney Swift roost in Kearney
>>
>> [External email - use caution]
>>
>> Maybe it’s time to preserve or build chimneys for Swifts much like we do
>> for
>> Bluebirds and Wooid Ducks.
>>
>> Don Maas
>>
>>
>>
>> On Sep 30, 2026 at 6:02 AM, <Jerry Toll via groups.io
>> <carolnhattie...>> wrote:
>>
>>
>>
>> Thanks for the reminder! We see lots of Chimney Swifts migrating at the
>> Hitchcock Hawkwatch. Also the Florence area business district hosts roost
>> for them.
>>
>> Jerry Toll
>>
>>
>>
>> On Wed, Sep 30, 2026 at 6:04 AM flyingcarlini via groups.io
>> <flyingcarlini...> wrote:
>>
>> Thanks William, Diane, and Robin for the reminder that September and
>> early October is the time to view impressive numbers of Chimney Swifts
>> streaming into our local chimneys to roost at night. The big old brick
>> chimneys that shelter anywhere from dozens to hundreds of CHSWs moving
>> through this time of year won't be around forever and unfortunately the new
>> chimneys exclude entry, so It's great to document these crucial chimney
>> roost sites on eBird and bring to light a largely out of sight/out of mind
>> phenomenon featuring a vulnerable species that's in decline.
>>
>> Interesting to think of them entering in groups of 4-6, maybe family
>> groups? Some of our photos have shown rows in flight of similarly sized
>> groups during pre-entry chimney flyovers.
>>
>> Regarding their hesitation to enter a chimney, in addition to entry
>> likely being slowed as other arrivals clear out of the way, wind seems to
>> be a factor that can result in birds aborting entry attempts before finally
>> dropping in. Sometimes it diminishes at nightfall, so maybe some delay
>> their entry? Last year during a large flock entry one particular evening,
>> several birds actually whacked HARD against the lip of the chimney while
>> trying to enter (presumably inexperienced juvs) apparently due to wind and
>> possibly a subpar approach direction of the circling flock. It looked
>> brutal but they all appeared to ricochet off and stay airborne somehow. 2
>> nights ago, we tallied 285 entering the spacious chimney at Westminster
>> church on South St. & Sheridan Blvd. during calm conditions which allowed
>> them to more easily hit the bullseye and drop straight down in an orderly
>> controlled flow.
>>
>> -Shari Schwartz & John Carlini, Lincoln
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> On Saturday, September 26, 2026 at 09:58:32 PM CDT, Robin Harding via
>> groups.io <pine2siskin4...> wrote:
>>
>>
>>
>> Nebraska birders,
>>
>> I had never watched Chimney Swifts go to their night roost. It was very
>> cool to experience part of it with Bill Flack on September 24. It's too
>> bad that we couldn't stay until the last swift descended into the chimney.
>> I was unable to go back the next evening but I did this evening, September
>> 26, arriving at about 7:10, when there were only five swifts circling the
>> chimney. For a while, I thought that the swifts were using a different
>> chimney this evening or that they had migrated south.
>>
>> The number of swifts slowly grew and they continued to circle the
>> church's chimney. I thought that I saw a few swifts drop down into the
>> chimney but as Bill wrote, it was difficult to determine if the swifts were
>> going into the chimney or dropping down behind it. It was hard to estimate
>> the total number of swifts since I couldn't see the whole flock but I
>> estimated 60 swifts. The swirling mass of swifts continued. When it was
>> almost too dark for me to see the birds, it looked like many swifts were
>> dropping into the chimney but many were still circling. When I stopped
>> hearing them twitter, I assumed that they were all in the chimney. It was
>> about 8:00.
>>
>> My experience was very similar to Bill's and Diane's.
>>
>> Robin Harding
>> Shelton, Nebr.
>>
>> On Sat, Sep 26, 2026 at 9:11 PM dt via groups.io <dtandelsie=
>> <yahoo.com...> wrote:
>>
>> William, this actually sounds similar to what I saw in Gothenburg on
>> August 29th. The darker it got, the more rapidly they disappeared down the
>> chimney, but as some descended, others flew by and circled around,
>> eventually also descending. I watched approx. 200 enter the single chimney
>> in approximately 17 minutes. https://ebird.org/checkli.st/S388114605 >> Quite a sight ! It would be great if birders who live near these chimneys
>> used as migration roosts monitored them in late summer early fall!
>> Diane Thomas in Laramie, WY
>>
>> Yahoo Mail: Search, Organize, Conquer
>> <https://mail.onelink.me/107872968?pid=nativeplacement&c=US_Acquisition_YMktg_315_SearchOrgConquer_EmailSignature&af_sub1=Acquisition&af_sub2=US_YMktg&af_sub3=&af_sub4=100002039&af_sub5=C01_Email_Static_&af_ios_store_cpp=0c38e4b0-a27e-40f9-a211-f4e2de32ab91&af_android_url=https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?<id...>&listing=search_organize_conquer> >>
>> On Sat, Sep 26, 2026 at 9:36 PM, William Flack via groups.io
>> <sparvophile...> wrote:
>>
>> On Thursday evening, Sept. 24, Robin Harding and I watched *Chimney
>> Swifts* circling over the block with St. Luke's and Central Elementary.
>> I estimated the size of the flock as c. 200 birds. The orbit sometimes
>> moved away, but generally included the St. Luke's chimney; and often, as
>> swifts flew over the chimney, they fluttered a bit or dropped as though
>> checking it out. However, it didn't appear that they were going down the
>> chimney in any numbers. (It was hard to tell whether birds went down the
>> chimney or behind the church, but it appeared that most were doing the
>> latter.) Unfortunately, we had to get to a movie at the World at 7:30, so
>> left the swifts at 7:23, before we could see if they'd actually go down the
>> chimney in numbers.
>>
>>
>>
>> The following evening (Sept. 25), I returned to the site, arriving at
>> about 7:30. The swifts were again circling, but there numbers appeared to
>> be about half of what they were the previous night—perhaps a different
>> flock, or perhaps many had already gone to roost. This time, the loop in
>> which they were flying always seemed to include the space right above the
>> church. Again, birds passing over the chimney would drop down and flutter a
>> bit, as though checking it out, but would usually resume circling. After a
>> while, though, it appeared that they were starting to go down. It looked
>> like 4–6 birds would drop down into the chimney; and, after that, birds
>> would dip down to check, but no one else would descend for a little while,
>> until another handful went down. My conjecture is that birds that flew down
>> the chimney took some time to find footholds, and until they did, were
>> beating their wings; if additional birds had flown down during this time,
>> they would've interfered with one another, and possibly the whole bunch
>> would've fallen to the bottom. Once this started, the number of circling
>> birds seemed to decline surprisingly quickly, and the last of them were
>> gone by 8 p.m.; presumably, down the chimney, though it didn't seem as
>> though I'd seen that many going into it.
>>
>>
>>
>> Other accounts make it sound as though large numbers of swifts pour down
>> a chimney, unlike my birds, which seemed to go down a handful at a time.
>> Maybe the St. Luke's flue is narrower than the brick chimney would suggest,
>> and there's not room for all that many birds to go down at once?
>>
>>
>>
>> William Flack
>>
>> Kearney
>>
>>
>>
>>
On Wed, Sep 30, 2026 at 10:23 PM Bill Kaempfer via groups.io
<William.Kaempfer...> wrote:
> It seems to me that I did see an artificial swift roost somewhere. It was
> a hollow concrete tree stump with the outside painted to look like bark and
> stood about 12-15 feet tall. Wisconsin maybe?
>
> Bill Kaempfer
> Safety Harbor, FL
>
>
> ------------------------------
> *From:* <NEBirds...> <NEBirds...> on behalf of Don and
> Shirley Maas via groups.io <snowbirds2012...>
> *Sent:* Wednesday, September 30, 2026 2:52 PM
> *To:* Nebirds <NEBirds...>
> *Subject:* Re: [NEBirds] Chimney Swift roost in Kearney
>
> [External email - use caution]
>
> Maybe it’s time to preserve or build chimneys for Swifts much like we do
> for
> Bluebirds and Wooid Ducks.
>
> Don Maas
>
>
>
> On Sep 30, 2026 at 6:02 AM, <Jerry Toll via groups.io
> <carolnhattie...>> wrote:
>
>
>
> Thanks for the reminder! We see lots of Chimney Swifts migrating at the
> Hitchcock Hawkwatch. Also the Florence area business district hosts roost
> for them.
>
> Jerry Toll
>
>
>
> On Wed, Sep 30, 2026 at 6:04 AM flyingcarlini via groups.io
> <flyingcarlini...> wrote:
>
> Thanks William, Diane, and Robin for the reminder that September and early
> October is the time to view impressive numbers of Chimney Swifts streaming
> into our local chimneys to roost at night. The big old brick chimneys that
> shelter anywhere from dozens to hundreds of CHSWs moving through this time
> of year won't be around forever and unfortunately the new chimneys exclude
> entry, so It's great to document these crucial chimney roost sites on eBird
> and bring to light a largely out of sight/out of mind phenomenon featuring
> a vulnerable species that's in decline.
>
> Interesting to think of them entering in groups of 4-6, maybe family
> groups? Some of our photos have shown rows in flight of similarly sized
> groups during pre-entry chimney flyovers.
>
> Regarding their hesitation to enter a chimney, in addition to entry likely
> being slowed as other arrivals clear out of the way, wind seems to be a
> factor that can result in birds aborting entry attempts before finally
> dropping in. Sometimes it diminishes at nightfall, so maybe some delay
> their entry? Last year during a large flock entry one particular evening,
> several birds actually whacked HARD against the lip of the chimney while
> trying to enter (presumably inexperienced juvs) apparently due to wind and
> possibly a subpar approach direction of the circling flock. It looked
> brutal but they all appeared to ricochet off and stay airborne somehow. 2
> nights ago, we tallied 285 entering the spacious chimney at Westminster
> church on South St. & Sheridan Blvd. during calm conditions which allowed
> them to more easily hit the bullseye and drop straight down in an orderly
> controlled flow.
>
> -Shari Schwartz & John Carlini, Lincoln
>
>
>
>
>
>
> On Saturday, September 26, 2026 at 09:58:32 PM CDT, Robin Harding via
> groups.io <pine2siskin4...> wrote:
>
>
>
> Nebraska birders,
>
> I had never watched Chimney Swifts go to their night roost. It was very
> cool to experience part of it with Bill Flack on September 24. It's too
> bad that we couldn't stay until the last swift descended into the chimney.
> I was unable to go back the next evening but I did this evening, September
> 26, arriving at about 7:10, when there were only five swifts circling the
> chimney. For a while, I thought that the swifts were using a different
> chimney this evening or that they had migrated south.
>
> The number of swifts slowly grew and they continued to circle the church's
> chimney. I thought that I saw a few swifts drop down into the chimney but
> as Bill wrote, it was difficult to determine if the swifts were going into
> the chimney or dropping down behind it. It was hard to estimate the total
> number of swifts since I couldn't see the whole flock but I estimated 60
> swifts. The swirling mass of swifts continued. When it was almost too
> dark for me to see the birds, it looked like many swifts were dropping into
> the chimney but many were still circling. When I stopped hearing them
> twitter, I assumed that they were all in the chimney. It was about 8:00.
>
> My experience was very similar to Bill's and Diane's.
>
> Robin Harding
> Shelton, Nebr.
>
> On Sat, Sep 26, 2026 at 9:11 PM dt via groups.io <dtandelsie=
> <yahoo.com...> wrote:
>
> William, this actually sounds similar to what I saw in Gothenburg on
> August 29th. The darker it got, the more rapidly they disappeared down the
> chimney, but as some descended, others flew by and circled around,
> eventually also descending. I watched approx. 200 enter the single chimney
> in approximately 17 minutes. https://ebird.org/checkli.st/S388114605 > Quite a sight ! It would be great if birders who live near these chimneys
> used as migration roosts monitored them in late summer early fall!
> Diane Thomas in Laramie, WY
>
> Yahoo Mail: Search, Organize, Conquer
> <https://mail.onelink.me/107872968?pid=nativeplacement&c=US_Acquisition_YMktg_315_SearchOrgConquer_EmailSignature&af_sub1=Acquisition&af_sub2=US_YMktg&af_sub3=&af_sub4=100002039&af_sub5=C01_Email_Static_&af_ios_store_cpp=0c38e4b0-a27e-40f9-a211-f4e2de32ab91&af_android_url=https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?<id...>&listing=search_organize_conquer> >
> On Sat, Sep 26, 2026 at 9:36 PM, William Flack via groups.io
> <sparvophile...> wrote:
>
> On Thursday evening, Sept. 24, Robin Harding and I watched *Chimney
> Swifts* circling over the block with St. Luke's and Central Elementary. I
> estimated the size of the flock as c. 200 birds. The orbit sometimes moved
> away, but generally included the St. Luke's chimney; and often, as swifts
> flew over the chimney, they fluttered a bit or dropped as though checking
> it out. However, it didn't appear that they were going down the chimney in
> any numbers. (It was hard to tell whether birds went down the chimney or
> behind the church, but it appeared that most were doing the latter.)
> Unfortunately, we had to get to a movie at the World at 7:30, so left the
> swifts at 7:23, before we could see if they'd actually go down the chimney
> in numbers.
>
>
>
> The following evening (Sept. 25), I returned to the site, arriving at
> about 7:30. The swifts were again circling, but there numbers appeared to
> be about half of what they were the previous night—perhaps a different
> flock, or perhaps many had already gone to roost. This time, the loop in
> which they were flying always seemed to include the space right above the
> church. Again, birds passing over the chimney would drop down and flutter a
> bit, as though checking it out, but would usually resume circling. After a
> while, though, it appeared that they were starting to go down. It looked
> like 4–6 birds would drop down into the chimney; and, after that, birds
> would dip down to check, but no one else would descend for a little while,
> until another handful went down. My conjecture is that birds that flew down
> the chimney took some time to find footholds, and until they did, were
> beating their wings; if additional birds had flown down during this time,
> they would've interfered with one another, and possibly the whole bunch
> would've fallen to the bottom. Once this started, the number of circling
> birds seemed to decline surprisingly quickly, and the last of them were
> gone by 8 p.m.; presumably, down the chimney, though it didn't seem as
> though I'd seen that many going into it.
>
>
>
> Other accounts make it sound as though large numbers of swifts pour down a
> chimney, unlike my birds, which seemed to go down a handful at a time.
> Maybe the St. Luke's flue is narrower than the brick chimney would suggest,
> and there's not room for all that many birds to go down at once?
>
>
>
> William Flack
>
> Kearney
>
>
>
>
Date: 9/30/26 5:23 pm From: Shirley Maas via groups.io <dtmsem2006...> Subject: Re: [NEBirds] Chimney Swift roost in Kearney
This is why I enjoy NEBirds . Sometimes opens up. Interesting discussions As an old Bluebird trail monitor I know their success Locally here is AZ there has been a lot of success in applying this to Lucy WarblersLess success in artificial boxes for martins who nest in squares.Back to square one on thatDon MaasMesa AZ
“If you do not take an interest in the affairs of your government then you are doomed to live under the rules of fools. Plato“You can ignore reality, but you cannot ignore the consequences of reality.”
Don & Shirley MaasThe Maas’s have migrated to the Valley of the Sun in Mesa, AZ from Choctaw, Ok for the winter.
On Wednesday, September 30, 2026, 5:06 PM, dt via groups.io <dtandelsie...> wrote:
I love this discussion! It would be great to document as many currently used chimneys as we can to try to ensure their preservation, and perhaps by looking at metrics of those, we could get a better idea of what makes a good migration roost. Ebird would be a good source to start with to look for observations of large numbers of CHSW between August and October. Here's a good article I found. https://www.columbia-audubon.org/birds-in-big-numbers-migratory-chimney-swift-roosts/
Diane Thomas in Laramie
Yahoo Mail: Search, Organize, Conquer
On Wed, Sep 30, 2026 at 6:25 PM, Art Check via groups.io<artsbirdbrain...> wrote:
I have read mixed reviews about people who have attempted to build towers for chimney swifts. I read that sometimes wooden towers don’t seem to attract them or at least for breeding purposes, as well as a brick chimney might?Regarding Don‘s comment about building chimneys for them. I’m curious what people have done and what kind of luck they’ve had. I’m also curious about how high realistically a chimney has to be in order for it to be effective. I know there are resources out there, but just didn’t know if people had personal experience with this. great discussion and maybe something people can actually do something about like putting up bluebird houses or wood boxes or Martin houses.ThanksArt Check,Nevada, Iowa
On Sep 30, 2026, at 3:23 PM, Bill Kaempfer via groups.io <William.Kaempfer...> wrote:
It seems to me that I did see an artificial swift roost somewhere. It was a hollow concrete tree stump with the outside painted to look like bark and stood about 12-15 feet tall. Wisconsin maybe?
Bill KaempferSafety Harbor, FL
From: <NEBirds...> <NEBirds...> on behalf of Don and Shirley Maas via groups.io <snowbirds2012...>
Sent: Wednesday, September 30, 2026 2:52 PM
To: Nebirds <NEBirds...>
Subject: Re: [NEBirds] Chimney Swift roost in Kearney
[External email - use caution]
Maybe it’s time to preserve or build chimneys for Swifts much like we do forBluebirds and Wooid Ducks.
Don Maas
On Sep 30, 2026 at 6:02 AM, <Jerry Toll via groups.io> wrote:
Thanks for the reminder! We see lots of Chimney Swifts migrating at the Hitchcock Hawkwatch. Also the Florence area business district hosts roost for them.
Jerry Toll
On Wed, Sep 30, 2026 at 6:04 AM flyingcarlini via groups.io <flyingcarlini...> wrote:
Thanks William, Diane, and Robin for the reminder that September and early October is the time to view impressive numbers of Chimney Swifts streaming into our local chimneys to roost at night. The big old brick chimneys that shelter anywhere from dozens to hundreds of CHSWs moving through this time of year won't be around forever and unfortunately the new chimneys exclude entry, so It's great to document these crucial chimney roost sites on eBird and bring to light a largely out of sight/out of mind phenomenon featuring a vulnerable species that's in decline.
Interesting to think of them entering in groups of 4-6, maybe family groups? Some of our photos have shown rows in flight of similarly sized groups during pre-entry chimney flyovers.
Regarding their hesitation to enter a chimney, in addition to entry likely being slowed as other arrivals clear out of the way, wind seems to be a factor that can result in birds aborting entry attempts before finally dropping in. Sometimes it diminishes at nightfall, so maybe some delay their entry? Last year during a large flock entry one particular evening, several birds actually whacked HARD against the lip of the chimney while trying to enter (presumably inexperienced juvs) apparently due to wind and possibly a subpar approach direction of the circling flock. It looked brutal but they all appeared to ricochet off and stay airborne somehow. 2 nights ago, we tallied 285 entering the spacious chimney at Westminster church on South St. & Sheridan Blvd. during calm conditions which allowed them to more easily hit the bullseye and drop straight down in an orderly controlled flow.
-Shari Schwartz & John Carlini, Lincoln
On Saturday, September 26, 2026 at 09:58:32 PM CDT, Robin Harding via groups.io <pine2siskin4...> wrote:
Nebraska birders,
I had never watched Chimney Swifts go to their night roost. It was very cool to experience part of it with Bill Flack on September 24. It's too bad that we couldn't stay until the last swift descended into the chimney. I was unable to go back the next evening but I did this evening, September 26, arriving at about 7:10, when there were only five swifts circling the chimney. For a while, I thought that the swifts were using a different chimney this evening or that they had migrated south.
The number of swifts slowly grew and they continued to circle the church's chimney. I thought that I saw a few swifts drop down into the chimney but as Bill wrote, it was difficult to determine if the swifts were going into the chimney or dropping down behind it. It was hard to estimate the total number of swifts since I couldn't see the whole flock but I estimated 60 swifts. The swirling mass of swifts continued. When it was almost too dark for me to see the birds, it looked like many swifts were dropping into the chimney but many were still circling. When I stopped hearing them twitter, I assumed that they were all in the chimney. It was about 8:00.
My experience was very similar to Bill's and Diane's.
Robin Harding
Shelton, Nebr.
On Sat, Sep 26, 2026 at 9:11 PM dt via groups.io <dtandelsie...> wrote:
William, this actually sounds similar to what I saw in Gothenburg on August 29th. The darker it got, the more rapidly they disappeared down the chimney, but as some descended, others flew by and circled around, eventually also descending. I watched approx. 200 enter the single chimney in approximately 17 minutes. https://ebird.org/checkli.st/S388114605 Quite a sight ! It would be great if birders who live near these chimneys used as migration roosts monitored them in late summer early fall!
Diane Thomas in Laramie, WY
Yahoo Mail: Search, Organize, Conquer
On Sat, Sep 26, 2026 at 9:36 PM, William Flack via groups.io<sparvophile...> wrote:
On Thursday evening, Sept. 24, Robin Harding and I watchedChimney Swifts circling over the block with St. Luke's and Central Elementary. I estimated the size of the flock as c. 200 birds. The orbit sometimes moved away, but generally included the St. Luke's chimney; and often, as swifts flew over the chimney, they fluttered a bit or dropped as though checking it out. However, it didn't appear that they were going down the chimney in any numbers. (It was hard to tell whether birds went down the chimney or behind the church, but it appeared that most were doing the latter.) Unfortunately, we had to get to a movie at the World at 7:30, so left the swifts at 7:23, before we could see if they'd actually go down the chimney in numbers.
The following evening (Sept. 25), I returned to the site, arriving at about 7:30. The swifts were again circling, but there numbers appeared to be about half of what they were the previous night—perhaps a different flock, or perhaps many had already gone to roost. This time, the loop in which they were flying always seemed to include the space right above the church. Again, birds passing over the chimney would drop down and flutter a bit, as though checking it out, but would usually resume circling. After a while, though, it appeared that they were starting to go down. It looked like 4–6 birds would drop down into the chimney; and, after that, birds would dip down to check, but no one else would descend for a little while, until another handful went down. My conjecture is that birds that flew down the chimney took some time to find footholds, and until they did, were beating their wings; if additional birds had flown down during this time, they would've interfered with one another, and possibly the whole bunch would've fallen to the bottom. Once this started, the number of circling birds seemed to decline surprisingly quickly, and the last of them were gone by 8 p.m.; presumably, down the chimney, though it didn't seem as though I'd seen that many going into it.
Other accounts make it sound as though large numbers of swifts pour down a chimney, unlike my birds, which seemed to go down a handful at a time. Maybe the St. Luke's flue is narrower than the brick chimney would suggest, and there's not room for all that many birds to go down at once?
Date: 9/30/26 5:07 pm From: dt via groups.io <dtandelsie...> Subject: Re: [NEBirds] Chimney Swift roost in Kearney
I love this discussion! It would be great to document as many currently used chimneys as we can to try to ensure their preservation, and perhaps by looking at metrics of those, we could get a better idea of what makes a good migration roost. Ebird would be a good source to start with to look for observations of large numbers of CHSW between August and October. Here's a good article I found. https://www.columbia-audubon.org/birds-in-big-numbers-migratory-chimney-swift-roosts/
Diane Thomas in Laramie
Yahoo Mail: Search, Organize, Conquer
On Wed, Sep 30, 2026 at 6:25 PM, Art Check via groups.io<artsbirdbrain...> wrote:
I have read mixed reviews about people who have attempted to build towers for chimney swifts. I read that sometimes wooden towers don’t seem to attract them or at least for breeding purposes, as well as a brick chimney might?Regarding Don‘s comment about building chimneys for them. I’m curious what people have done and what kind of luck they’ve had. I’m also curious about how high realistically a chimney has to be in order for it to be effective. I know there are resources out there, but just didn’t know if people had personal experience with this. great discussion and maybe something people can actually do something about like putting up bluebird houses or wood boxes or Martin houses.ThanksArt Check,Nevada, Iowa
On Sep 30, 2026, at 3:23 PM, Bill Kaempfer via groups.io <William.Kaempfer...> wrote:
It seems to me that I did see an artificial swift roost somewhere. It was a hollow concrete tree stump with the outside painted to look like bark and stood about 12-15 feet tall. Wisconsin maybe?
Bill KaempferSafety Harbor, FL
From: <NEBirds...> <NEBirds...> on behalf of Don and Shirley Maas via groups.io <snowbirds2012...>
Sent: Wednesday, September 30, 2026 2:52 PM
To: Nebirds <NEBirds...>
Subject: Re: [NEBirds] Chimney Swift roost in Kearney
[External email - use caution]
Maybe it’s time to preserve or build chimneys for Swifts much like we do forBluebirds and Wooid Ducks.
Don Maas
On Sep 30, 2026 at 6:02 AM, <Jerry Toll via groups.io> wrote:
Thanks for the reminder! We see lots of Chimney Swifts migrating at the Hitchcock Hawkwatch. Also the Florence area business district hosts roost for them.
Jerry Toll
On Wed, Sep 30, 2026 at 6:04 AM flyingcarlini via groups.io <flyingcarlini...> wrote:
Thanks William, Diane, and Robin for the reminder that September and early October is the time to view impressive numbers of Chimney Swifts streaming into our local chimneys to roost at night. The big old brick chimneys that shelter anywhere from dozens to hundreds of CHSWs moving through this time of year won't be around forever and unfortunately the new chimneys exclude entry, so It's great to document these crucial chimney roost sites on eBird and bring to light a largely out of sight/out of mind phenomenon featuring a vulnerable species that's in decline.
Interesting to think of them entering in groups of 4-6, maybe family groups? Some of our photos have shown rows in flight of similarly sized groups during pre-entry chimney flyovers.
Regarding their hesitation to enter a chimney, in addition to entry likely being slowed as other arrivals clear out of the way, wind seems to be a factor that can result in birds aborting entry attempts before finally dropping in. Sometimes it diminishes at nightfall, so maybe some delay their entry? Last year during a large flock entry one particular evening, several birds actually whacked HARD against the lip of the chimney while trying to enter (presumably inexperienced juvs) apparently due to wind and possibly a subpar approach direction of the circling flock. It looked brutal but they all appeared to ricochet off and stay airborne somehow. 2 nights ago, we tallied 285 entering the spacious chimney at Westminster church on South St. & Sheridan Blvd. during calm conditions which allowed them to more easily hit the bullseye and drop straight down in an orderly controlled flow.
-Shari Schwartz & John Carlini, Lincoln
On Saturday, September 26, 2026 at 09:58:32 PM CDT, Robin Harding via groups.io <pine2siskin4...> wrote:
Nebraska birders,
I had never watched Chimney Swifts go to their night roost. It was very cool to experience part of it with Bill Flack on September 24. It's too bad that we couldn't stay until the last swift descended into the chimney. I was unable to go back the next evening but I did this evening, September 26, arriving at about 7:10, when there were only five swifts circling the chimney. For a while, I thought that the swifts were using a different chimney this evening or that they had migrated south.
The number of swifts slowly grew and they continued to circle the church's chimney. I thought that I saw a few swifts drop down into the chimney but as Bill wrote, it was difficult to determine if the swifts were going into the chimney or dropping down behind it. It was hard to estimate the total number of swifts since I couldn't see the whole flock but I estimated 60 swifts. The swirling mass of swifts continued. When it was almost too dark for me to see the birds, it looked like many swifts were dropping into the chimney but many were still circling. When I stopped hearing them twitter, I assumed that they were all in the chimney. It was about 8:00.
My experience was very similar to Bill's and Diane's.
Robin Harding
Shelton, Nebr.
On Sat, Sep 26, 2026 at 9:11 PM dt via groups.io <dtandelsie...> wrote:
William, this actually sounds similar to what I saw in Gothenburg on August 29th. The darker it got, the more rapidly they disappeared down the chimney, but as some descended, others flew by and circled around, eventually also descending. I watched approx. 200 enter the single chimney in approximately 17 minutes. https://ebird.org/checkli.st/S388114605 Quite a sight ! It would be great if birders who live near these chimneys used as migration roosts monitored them in late summer early fall!
Diane Thomas in Laramie, WY
Yahoo Mail: Search, Organize, Conquer
On Sat, Sep 26, 2026 at 9:36 PM, William Flack via groups.io<sparvophile...> wrote:
On Thursday evening, Sept. 24, Robin Harding and I watchedChimney Swifts circling over the block with St. Luke's and Central Elementary. I estimated the size of the flock as c. 200 birds. The orbit sometimes moved away, but generally included the St. Luke's chimney; and often, as swifts flew over the chimney, they fluttered a bit or dropped as though checking it out. However, it didn't appear that they were going down the chimney in any numbers. (It was hard to tell whether birds went down the chimney or behind the church, but it appeared that most were doing the latter.) Unfortunately, we had to get to a movie at the World at 7:30, so left the swifts at 7:23, before we could see if they'd actually go down the chimney in numbers.
The following evening (Sept. 25), I returned to the site, arriving at about 7:30. The swifts were again circling, but there numbers appeared to be about half of what they were the previous night—perhaps a different flock, or perhaps many had already gone to roost. This time, the loop in which they were flying always seemed to include the space right above the church. Again, birds passing over the chimney would drop down and flutter a bit, as though checking it out, but would usually resume circling. After a while, though, it appeared that they were starting to go down. It looked like 4–6 birds would drop down into the chimney; and, after that, birds would dip down to check, but no one else would descend for a little while, until another handful went down. My conjecture is that birds that flew down the chimney took some time to find footholds, and until they did, were beating their wings; if additional birds had flown down during this time, they would've interfered with one another, and possibly the whole bunch would've fallen to the bottom. Once this started, the number of circling birds seemed to decline surprisingly quickly, and the last of them were gone by 8 p.m.; presumably, down the chimney, though it didn't seem as though I'd seen that many going into it.
Other accounts make it sound as though large numbers of swifts pour down a chimney, unlike my birds, which seemed to go down a handful at a time. Maybe the St. Luke's flue is narrower than the brick chimney would suggest, and there's not room for all that many birds to go down at once?
Date: 9/30/26 2:12 pm From: Thomas Labedz via groups.io <telabedz...> Subject: Re: [NEBirds] Chimney Swift roost in Kearney
An artificial chimney swift roost was built on UNL's east campus in Lincoln
and dedicated to the late Dr. Mary Bomberger Brown who championed chimney
swift conservation in Lincoln. Link below. I do not know if it has
successfully attracted any swifts.
Thomas Labedz, Lincoln
News Story | School of Natural Resources | University of Nebraska–Lincoln
<https://snr.unl.edu/aboutus/what/newstory.aspx?fid=1139>
On Wed, Sep 30, 2026 at 3:23 PM Bill Kaempfer via groups.io
<William.Kaempfer...> wrote:
> It seems to me that I did see an artificial swift roost somewhere. It was
> a hollow concrete tree stump with the outside painted to look like bark and
> stood about 12-15 feet tall. Wisconsin maybe?
>
> Bill Kaempfer
> Safety Harbor, FL
>
>
> ------------------------------
> *From:* <NEBirds...> <NEBirds...> on behalf of Don and
> Shirley Maas via groups.io <snowbirds2012...>
> *Sent:* Wednesday, September 30, 2026 2:52 PM
> *To:* Nebirds <NEBirds...>
> *Subject:* Re: [NEBirds] Chimney Swift roost in Kearney
>
> [External email - use caution]
>
> Maybe it’s time to preserve or build chimneys for Swifts much like we do
> for
> Bluebirds and Wooid Ducks.
>
> Don Maas
>
>
>
> On Sep 30, 2026 at 6:02 AM, <Jerry Toll via groups.io
> <carolnhattie...>> wrote:
>
>
>
> Thanks for the reminder! We see lots of Chimney Swifts migrating at the
> Hitchcock Hawkwatch. Also the Florence area business district hosts roost
> for them.
>
> Jerry Toll
>
>
>
> On Wed, Sep 30, 2026 at 6:04 AM flyingcarlini via groups.io
> <flyingcarlini...> wrote:
>
> Thanks William, Diane, and Robin for the reminder that September and early
> October is the time to view impressive numbers of Chimney Swifts streaming
> into our local chimneys to roost at night. The big old brick chimneys that
> shelter anywhere from dozens to hundreds of CHSWs moving through this time
> of year won't be around forever and unfortunately the new chimneys exclude
> entry, so It's great to document these crucial chimney roost sites on eBird
> and bring to light a largely out of sight/out of mind phenomenon featuring
> a vulnerable species that's in decline.
>
> Interesting to think of them entering in groups of 4-6, maybe family
> groups? Some of our photos have shown rows in flight of similarly sized
> groups during pre-entry chimney flyovers.
>
> Regarding their hesitation to enter a chimney, in addition to entry likely
> being slowed as other arrivals clear out of the way, wind seems to be a
> factor that can result in birds aborting entry attempts before finally
> dropping in. Sometimes it diminishes at nightfall, so maybe some delay
> their entry? Last year during a large flock entry one particular evening,
> several birds actually whacked HARD against the lip of the chimney while
> trying to enter (presumably inexperienced juvs) apparently due to wind and
> possibly a subpar approach direction of the circling flock. It looked
> brutal but they all appeared to ricochet off and stay airborne somehow. 2
> nights ago, we tallied 285 entering the spacious chimney at Westminster
> church on South St. & Sheridan Blvd. during calm conditions which allowed
> them to more easily hit the bullseye and drop straight down in an orderly
> controlled flow.
>
> -Shari Schwartz & John Carlini, Lincoln
>
>
>
>
>
>
> On Saturday, September 26, 2026 at 09:58:32 PM CDT, Robin Harding via
> groups.io <pine2siskin4...> wrote:
>
>
>
> Nebraska birders,
>
> I had never watched Chimney Swifts go to their night roost. It was very
> cool to experience part of it with Bill Flack on September 24. It's too
> bad that we couldn't stay until the last swift descended into the chimney.
> I was unable to go back the next evening but I did this evening, September
> 26, arriving at about 7:10, when there were only five swifts circling the
> chimney. For a while, I thought that the swifts were using a different
> chimney this evening or that they had migrated south.
>
> The number of swifts slowly grew and they continued to circle the church's
> chimney. I thought that I saw a few swifts drop down into the chimney but
> as Bill wrote, it was difficult to determine if the swifts were going into
> the chimney or dropping down behind it. It was hard to estimate the total
> number of swifts since I couldn't see the whole flock but I estimated 60
> swifts. The swirling mass of swifts continued. When it was almost too
> dark for me to see the birds, it looked like many swifts were dropping into
> the chimney but many were still circling. When I stopped hearing them
> twitter, I assumed that they were all in the chimney. It was about 8:00.
>
> My experience was very similar to Bill's and Diane's.
>
> Robin Harding
> Shelton, Nebr.
>
> On Sat, Sep 26, 2026 at 9:11 PM dt via groups.io <dtandelsie=
> <yahoo.com...> wrote:
>
> William, this actually sounds similar to what I saw in Gothenburg on
> August 29th. The darker it got, the more rapidly they disappeared down the
> chimney, but as some descended, others flew by and circled around,
> eventually also descending. I watched approx. 200 enter the single chimney
> in approximately 17 minutes. https://ebird.org/checkli.st/S388114605 > Quite a sight ! It would be great if birders who live near these chimneys
> used as migration roosts monitored them in late summer early fall!
> Diane Thomas in Laramie, WY
>
> Yahoo Mail: Search, Organize, Conquer
> <https://mail.onelink.me/107872968?pid=nativeplacement&c=US_Acquisition_YMktg_315_SearchOrgConquer_EmailSignature&af_sub1=Acquisition&af_sub2=US_YMktg&af_sub3=&af_sub4=100002039&af_sub5=C01_Email_Static_&af_ios_store_cpp=0c38e4b0-a27e-40f9-a211-f4e2de32ab91&af_android_url=https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?<id...>&listing=search_organize_conquer> >
> On Sat, Sep 26, 2026 at 9:36 PM, William Flack via groups.io
> <sparvophile...> wrote:
>
> On Thursday evening, Sept. 24, Robin Harding and I watched *Chimney
> Swifts* circling over the block with St. Luke's and Central Elementary. I
> estimated the size of the flock as c. 200 birds. The orbit sometimes moved
> away, but generally included the St. Luke's chimney; and often, as swifts
> flew over the chimney, they fluttered a bit or dropped as though checking
> it out. However, it didn't appear that they were going down the chimney in
> any numbers. (It was hard to tell whether birds went down the chimney or
> behind the church, but it appeared that most were doing the latter.)
> Unfortunately, we had to get to a movie at the World at 7:30, so left the
> swifts at 7:23, before we could see if they'd actually go down the chimney
> in numbers.
>
>
>
> The following evening (Sept. 25), I returned to the site, arriving at
> about 7:30. The swifts were again circling, but there numbers appeared to
> be about half of what they were the previous night—perhaps a different
> flock, or perhaps many had already gone to roost. This time, the loop in
> which they were flying always seemed to include the space right above the
> church. Again, birds passing over the chimney would drop down and flutter a
> bit, as though checking it out, but would usually resume circling. After a
> while, though, it appeared that they were starting to go down. It looked
> like 4–6 birds would drop down into the chimney; and, after that, birds
> would dip down to check, but no one else would descend for a little while,
> until another handful went down. My conjecture is that birds that flew down
> the chimney took some time to find footholds, and until they did, were
> beating their wings; if additional birds had flown down during this time,
> they would've interfered with one another, and possibly the whole bunch
> would've fallen to the bottom. Once this started, the number of circling
> birds seemed to decline surprisingly quickly, and the last of them were
> gone by 8 p.m.; presumably, down the chimney, though it didn't seem as
> though I'd seen that many going into it.
>
>
>
> Other accounts make it sound as though large numbers of swifts pour down a
> chimney, unlike my birds, which seemed to go down a handful at a time.
> Maybe the St. Luke's flue is narrower than the brick chimney would suggest,
> and there's not room for all that many birds to go down at once?
>
>
>
> William Flack
>
> Kearney
>
>
>
>
Date: 9/30/26 1:23 pm From: Bill Kaempfer via groups.io <William.Kaempfer...> Subject: Re: [NEBirds] Chimney Swift roost in Kearney
It seems to me that I did see an artificial swift roost somewhere. It was a hollow concrete tree stump with the outside painted to look like bark and stood about 12-15 feet tall. Wisconsin maybe?
Bill Kaempfer
Safety Harbor, FL
________________________________
From: <NEBirds...> <NEBirds...> on behalf of Don and Shirley Maas via groups.io <snowbirds2012...>
Sent: Wednesday, September 30, 2026 2:52 PM
To: Nebirds <NEBirds...>
Subject: Re: [NEBirds] Chimney Swift roost in Kearney
[External email - use caution]
Maybe it’s time to preserve or build chimneys for Swifts much like we do for
Bluebirds and Wooid Ducks.
Thanks for the reminder! We see lots of Chimney Swifts migrating at the Hitchcock Hawkwatch. Also the Florence area business district hosts roost for them.
Jerry Toll
On Wed, Sep 30, 2026 at 6:04 AM flyingcarlini via groups.io<http://groups.io/> <flyingcarlini...><mailto:<yahoo.com...>> wrote:
Thanks William, Diane, and Robin for the reminder that September and early October is the time to view impressive numbers of Chimney Swifts streaming into our local chimneys to roost at night. The big old brick chimneys that shelter anywhere from dozens to hundreds of CHSWs moving through this time of year won't be around forever and unfortunately the new chimneys exclude entry, so It's great to document these crucial chimney roost sites on eBird and bring to light a largely out of sight/out of mind phenomenon featuring a vulnerable species that's in decline.
Interesting to think of them entering in groups of 4-6, maybe family groups? Some of our photos have shown rows in flight of similarly sized groups during pre-entry chimney flyovers.
Regarding their hesitation to enter a chimney, in addition to entry likely being slowed as other arrivals clear out of the way, wind seems to be a factor that can result in birds aborting entry attempts before finally dropping in. Sometimes it diminishes at nightfall, so maybe some delay their entry? Last year during a large flock entry one particular evening, several birds actually whacked HARD against the lip of the chimney while trying to enter (presumably inexperienced juvs) apparently due to wind and possibly a subpar approach direction of the circling flock. It looked brutal but they all appeared to ricochet off and stay airborne somehow. 2 nights ago, we tallied 285 entering the spacious chimney at Westminster church on South St. & Sheridan Blvd. during calm conditions which allowed them to more easily hit the bullseye and drop straight down in an orderly controlled flow.
I had never watched Chimney Swifts go to their night roost. It was very cool to experience part of it with Bill Flack on September 24. It's too bad that we couldn't stay until the last swift descended into the chimney. I was unable to go back the next evening but I did this evening, September 26, arriving at about 7:10, when there were only five swifts circling the chimney. For a while, I thought that the swifts were using a different chimney this evening or that they had migrated south.
The number of swifts slowly grew and they continued to circle the church's chimney. I thought that I saw a few swifts drop down into the chimney but as Bill wrote, it was difficult to determine if the swifts were going into the chimney or dropping down behind it. It was hard to estimate the total number of swifts since I couldn't see the whole flock but I estimated 60 swifts. The swirling mass of swifts continued. When it was almost too dark for me to see the birds, it looked like many swifts were dropping into the chimney but many were still circling. When I stopped hearing them twitter, I assumed that they were all in the chimney. It was about 8:00.
My experience was very similar to Bill's and Diane's.
Robin Harding
Shelton, Nebr.
On Sat, Sep 26, 2026 at 9:11 PM dt via groups.io<http://groups.io/> <dtandelsie...><mailto:<yahoo.com...>> wrote:
William, this actually sounds similar to what I saw in Gothenburg on August 29th. The darker it got, the more rapidly they disappeared down the chimney, but as some descended, others flew by and circled around, eventually also descending. I watched approx. 200 enter the single chimney in approximately 17 minutes. https://ebird.org/checkli.st/S388114605 Quite a sight ! It would be great if birders who live near these chimneys used as migration roosts monitored them in late summer early fall!
Diane Thomas in Laramie, WY
On Thursday evening, Sept. 24, Robin Harding and I watched Chimney Swifts circling over the block with St. Luke's and Central Elementary. I estimated the size of the flock as c. 200 birds. The orbit sometimes moved away, but generally included the St. Luke's chimney; and often, as swifts flew over the chimney, they fluttered a bit or dropped as though checking it out. However, it didn't appear that they were going down the chimney in any numbers. (It was hard to tell whether birds went down the chimney or behind the church, but it appeared that most were doing the latter.) Unfortunately, we had to get to a movie at the World at 7:30, so left the swifts at 7:23, before we could see if they'd actually go down the chimney in numbers.
The following evening (Sept. 25), I returned to the site, arriving at about 7:30. The swifts were again circling, but there numbers appeared to be about half of what they were the previous night—perhaps a different flock, or perhaps many had already gone to roost. This time, the loop in which they were flying always seemed to include the space right above the church. Again, birds passing over the chimney would drop down and flutter a bit, as though checking it out, but would usually resume circling. After a while, though, it appeared that they were starting to go down. It looked like 4–6 birds would drop down into the chimney; and, after that, birds would dip down to check, but no one else would descend for a little while, until another handful went down. My conjecture is that birds that flew down the chimney took some time to find footholds, and until they did, were beating their wings; if additional birds had flown down during this time, they would've interfered with one another, and possibly the whole bunch would've fallen to the bottom. Once this started, the number of circling birds seemed to decline surprisingly quickly, and the last of them were gone by 8 p.m.; presumably, down the chimney, though it didn't seem as though I'd seen that many going into it.
Other accounts make it sound as though large numbers of swifts pour down a chimney, unlike my birds, which seemed to go down a handful at a time. Maybe the St. Luke's flue is narrower than the brick chimney would suggest, and there's not room for all that many birds to go down at once?
Date: 9/30/26 12:04 pm From: Don and Shirley Maas via groups.io <snowbirds2012...> Subject: Re: [NEBirds] Chimney Swift roost in Kearney
Tweet dreams are made of this
Image: ChatGPT/Kim Komando
🤯 WOW! On Oct. 8, 2025, weather radar counted 1.25 billion birds in the air over the U.S. That’s the biggest overnight flight ever recorded. One county saw 17.8 million fly over. And we’re in peak season right now.
📖 Read time: 1.5 minutes
Step outside tonight around 10. The sky looks empty.
It isn’t.
More than 80% of North America’s migratory bird species travel at night. Warblers, thrushes, sparrows. Most take off 30 to 45 minutes after sunset and fly as high as 10,000 feet. You never see them. A billion birds overhead, and not one stops to ask for directions. Show-offs.
📡 The radar that counts birds
The same radar that tracks storms for your forecast also picks up birds. A project called BirdCast, run by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and university partners, turns those blips into a live count.
Three nights have topped a billion birds. Oct. 6, 2023. Sept. 25, 2025. Then Oct. 8, 2025, at 1.25 billion. Two records, two weeks in the same year.
Late September to early October is peak season in the northern half of the country. A cold front with a north wind is the signal. The birds wait for a tailwind, then everybody goes at once. (Think Black Friday, with feathers.)
Could this week top a billion? Nobody knows until the radar says so. That’s half the fun.
Turn off outdoor lights on big nights. Bright lights pull birds off course and into windows. Scientists suggest lights off from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m.
Go birding the next morning. The birds that flew overnight land in parks, backyards and tree lines to rest and eat. Bring binoculars.
I’ve started a waterfowl migration service with my friend. I call it two men and a duck. Ba-dum-tss!
📩 Send this to someone who keeps a bird feeder full and binoculars by the window.
>
> On Sep 30, 2026 at 11:52 AM, <Don and Shirley Maas via groups.io (mailto:<snowbirds2012...>)> wrote:
>
>
>
>
>
> Maybe it’s time to preserve or build chimneys for Swifts much like we do for
>
> Bluebirds and Wooid Ducks.
>
>
>
> Don Maas
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> >
> > On Sep 30, 2026 at 6:02 AM, <Jerry Toll via groups.io (mailto:<carolnhattie...>)> wrote:
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > Thanks for the reminder! We see lots of Chimney Swifts migrating at the Hitchcock Hawkwatch. Also the Florence area business district hosts roost for them.
> >
> >
> >
> > Jerry Toll
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > On Wed, Sep 30, 2026 at 6:04 AM flyingcarlini via groups.io (http://groups.io) <flyingcarlini...> (mailto:<yahoo.com...>)> wrote:
> >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > Thanks William, Diane, and Robin for the reminder that September and early October is the time to view impressive numbers of Chimney Swifts streaming into our local chimneys to roost at night. The big old brick chimneys that shelter anywhere from dozens to hundreds of CHSWs moving through this time of year won't be around forever and unfortunately the new chimneys exclude entry, so It's great to document these crucial chimney roost sites on eBird and bring to light a largely out of sight/out of mind phenomenon featuring a vulnerable species that's in decline.
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > Interesting to think of them entering in groups of 4-6, maybe family groups? Some of our photos have shown rows in flight of similarly sized groups during pre-entry chimney flyovers.
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > Regarding their hesitation to enter a chimney, in addition to entry likely being slowed as other arrivals clear out of the way, wind seems to be a factor that can result in birds aborting entry attempts before finally dropping in. Sometimes it diminishes at nightfall, so maybe some delay their entry? Last year during a large flock entry one particular evening, several birds actually whacked HARD against the lip of the chimney while trying to enter (presumably inexperienced juvs) apparently due to wind and possibly a subpar approach direction of the circling flock. It looked brutal but they all appeared to ricochet off and stay airborne somehow. 2 nights ago, we tallied 285 entering the spacious chimney at Westminster church on South St. & Sheridan Blvd. during calm conditions which allowed them to more easily hit the bullseye and drop straight down in an orderly controlled flow.
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > -Shari Schwartz & John Carlini, Lincoln
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > On Saturday, September 26, 2026 at 09:58:32 PM CDT, Robin Harding via groups.io (http://groups.io) <pine2siskin4...> (mailto:<gmail.com...>)> wrote:
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > Nebraska birders,
> > >
> > > I had never watched Chimney Swifts go to their night roost. It was very cool to experience part of it with Bill Flack on September 24. It's too bad that we couldn't stay until the last swift descended into the chimney. I was unable to go back the next evening but I did this evening, September 26, arriving at about 7:10, when there were only five swifts circling the chimney. For a while, I thought that the swifts were using a different chimney this evening or that they had migrated south.
> > >
> > > The number of swifts slowly grew and they continued to circle the church's chimney. I thought that I saw a few swifts drop down into the chimney but as Bill wrote, it was difficult to determine if the swifts were going into the chimney or dropping down behind it. It was hard to estimate the total number of swifts since I couldn't see the whole flock but I estimated 60 swifts. The swirling mass of swifts continued. When it was almost too dark for me to see the birds, it looked like many swifts were dropping into the chimney but many were still circling. When I stopped hearing them twitter, I assumed that they were all in the chimney. It was about 8:00.
> > >
> > > My experience was very similar to Bill's and Diane's.
> > >
> > > Robin Harding
> > > Shelton, Nebr.
> > >
> > >
> > > On Sat, Sep 26, 2026 at 9:11 PM dt via groups.io (http://groups.io) <dtandelsie...> (mailto:<yahoo.com...>)> wrote:
> > >
> > > > William, this actually sounds similar to what I saw in Gothenburg on August 29th. The darker it got, the more rapidly they disappeared down the chimney, but as some descended, others flew by and circled around, eventually also descending. I watched approx. 200 enter the single chimney in approximately 17 minutes. https://ebird.org/checkli.st/S388114605 > > > > Quite a sight ! It would be great if birders who live near these chimneys used as migration roosts monitored them in late summer early fall!
> > > > Diane Thomas in Laramie, WY
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > Yahoo Mail: Search, Organize, Conquer (https://mail.onelink.me/107872968?pid=nativeplacement&c=US_Acquisition_YMktg_315_SearchOrgConquer_EmailSignature&af_sub1=Acquisition&af_sub2=US_YMktg&af_sub3=&af_sub4=100002039&af_sub5=C01_Email_Static_&af_ios_store_cpp=0c38e4b0-a27e-40f9-a211-f4e2de32ab91&af_android_url=https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?<id...>&listing=search_organize_conquer)
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > > On Sat, Sep 26, 2026 at 9:36 PM, William Flack via groups.io (http://groups.io)
> > > > >
> > > > > <sparvophile...> (mailto:<yahoo.com...>)> wrote:
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > > On Thursday evening, Sept. 24, Robin Harding and I watched Chimney Swifts circling over the block with St. Luke's and Central Elementary. I estimated the size of the flock as c. 200 birds. The orbit sometimes moved away, but generally included the St. Luke's chimney; and often, as swifts flew over the chimney, they fluttered a bit or dropped as though checking it out. However, it didn't appear that they were going down the chimney in any numbers. (It was hard to tell whether birds went down the chimney or behind the church, but it appeared that most were doing the latter.) Unfortunately, we had to get to a movie at the World at 7:30, so left the swifts at 7:23, before we could see if they'd actually go down the chimney in numbers.
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > > The following evening (Sept. 25), I returned to the site, arriving at about 7:30. The swifts were again circling, but there numbers appeared to be about half of what they were the previous night—perhaps a different flock, or perhaps many had already gone to roost. This time, the loop in which they were flying always seemed to include the space right above the church. Again, birds passing over the chimney would drop down and flutter a bit, as though checking it out, but would usually resume circling. After a while, though, it appeared that they were starting to go down. It looked like 4–6 birds would drop down into the chimney; and, after that, birds would dip down to check, but no one else would descend for a little while, until another handful went down. My conjecture is that birds that flew down the chimney took some time to find footholds, and until they did, were beating their wings; if additional birds had flown down during this time, they would've interfered with one another, and possibly the whole bunch would've fallen to the bottom. Once this started, the number of circling birds seemed to decline surprisingly quickly, and the last of them were gone by 8 p.m.; presumably, down the chimney, though it didn't seem as though I'd seen that many going into it.
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > > Other accounts make it sound as though large numbers of swifts pour down a chimney, unlike my birds, which seemed to go down a handful at a time. Maybe the St. Luke's flue is narrower than the brick chimney would suggest, and there's not room for all that many birds to go down at once?
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > > William Flack
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > > Kearney
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
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> > >
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>
>
>
>
>
>
Date: 9/30/26 11:52 am From: Don and Shirley Maas via groups.io <snowbirds2012...> Subject: Re: [NEBirds] Chimney Swift roost in Kearney
Maybe it’s time to preserve or build chimneys for Swifts much like we do for
Bluebirds and Wooid Ducks.
Don Maas
>
> On Sep 30, 2026 at 6:02 AM, <Jerry Toll via groups.io (mailto:<carolnhattie...>)> wrote:
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Thanks for the reminder! We see lots of Chimney Swifts migrating at the Hitchcock Hawkwatch. Also the Florence area business district hosts roost for them.
>
>
>
> Jerry Toll
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> On Wed, Sep 30, 2026 at 6:04 AM flyingcarlini via groups.io (http://groups.io) <flyingcarlini...> (mailto:<yahoo.com...>)> wrote:
>
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > Thanks William, Diane, and Robin for the reminder that September and early October is the time to view impressive numbers of Chimney Swifts streaming into our local chimneys to roost at night. The big old brick chimneys that shelter anywhere from dozens to hundreds of CHSWs moving through this time of year won't be around forever and unfortunately the new chimneys exclude entry, so It's great to document these crucial chimney roost sites on eBird and bring to light a largely out of sight/out of mind phenomenon featuring a vulnerable species that's in decline.
> >
> >
> >
> > Interesting to think of them entering in groups of 4-6, maybe family groups? Some of our photos have shown rows in flight of similarly sized groups during pre-entry chimney flyovers.
> >
> >
> >
> > Regarding their hesitation to enter a chimney, in addition to entry likely being slowed as other arrivals clear out of the way, wind seems to be a factor that can result in birds aborting entry attempts before finally dropping in. Sometimes it diminishes at nightfall, so maybe some delay their entry? Last year during a large flock entry one particular evening, several birds actually whacked HARD against the lip of the chimney while trying to enter (presumably inexperienced juvs) apparently due to wind and possibly a subpar approach direction of the circling flock. It looked brutal but they all appeared to ricochet off and stay airborne somehow. 2 nights ago, we tallied 285 entering the spacious chimney at Westminster church on South St. & Sheridan Blvd. during calm conditions which allowed them to more easily hit the bullseye and drop straight down in an orderly controlled flow.
> >
> >
> >
> > -Shari Schwartz & John Carlini, Lincoln
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > On Saturday, September 26, 2026 at 09:58:32 PM CDT, Robin Harding via groups.io (http://groups.io) <pine2siskin4...> (mailto:<gmail.com...>)> wrote:
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > Nebraska birders,
> >
> > I had never watched Chimney Swifts go to their night roost. It was very cool to experience part of it with Bill Flack on September 24. It's too bad that we couldn't stay until the last swift descended into the chimney. I was unable to go back the next evening but I did this evening, September 26, arriving at about 7:10, when there were only five swifts circling the chimney. For a while, I thought that the swifts were using a different chimney this evening or that they had migrated south.
> >
> > The number of swifts slowly grew and they continued to circle the church's chimney. I thought that I saw a few swifts drop down into the chimney but as Bill wrote, it was difficult to determine if the swifts were going into the chimney or dropping down behind it. It was hard to estimate the total number of swifts since I couldn't see the whole flock but I estimated 60 swifts. The swirling mass of swifts continued. When it was almost too dark for me to see the birds, it looked like many swifts were dropping into the chimney but many were still circling. When I stopped hearing them twitter, I assumed that they were all in the chimney. It was about 8:00.
> >
> > My experience was very similar to Bill's and Diane's.
> >
> > Robin Harding
> > Shelton, Nebr.
> >
> >
> > On Sat, Sep 26, 2026 at 9:11 PM dt via groups.io (http://groups.io) <dtandelsie...> (mailto:<yahoo.com...>)> wrote:
> >
> > > William, this actually sounds similar to what I saw in Gothenburg on August 29th. The darker it got, the more rapidly they disappeared down the chimney, but as some descended, others flew by and circled around, eventually also descending. I watched approx. 200 enter the single chimney in approximately 17 minutes. https://ebird.org/checkli.st/S388114605 > > > Quite a sight ! It would be great if birders who live near these chimneys used as migration roosts monitored them in late summer early fall!
> > > Diane Thomas in Laramie, WY
> > >
> > >
> > > Yahoo Mail: Search, Organize, Conquer (https://mail.onelink.me/107872968?pid=nativeplacement&c=US_Acquisition_YMktg_315_SearchOrgConquer_EmailSignature&af_sub1=Acquisition&af_sub2=US_YMktg&af_sub3=&af_sub4=100002039&af_sub5=C01_Email_Static_&af_ios_store_cpp=0c38e4b0-a27e-40f9-a211-f4e2de32ab91&af_android_url=https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?<id...>&listing=search_organize_conquer)
> > >
> > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > On Sat, Sep 26, 2026 at 9:36 PM, William Flack via groups.io (http://groups.io)
> > > >
> > > > <sparvophile...> (mailto:<yahoo.com...>)> wrote:
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > On Thursday evening, Sept. 24, Robin Harding and I watched Chimney Swifts circling over the block with St. Luke's and Central Elementary. I estimated the size of the flock as c. 200 birds. The orbit sometimes moved away, but generally included the St. Luke's chimney; and often, as swifts flew over the chimney, they fluttered a bit or dropped as though checking it out. However, it didn't appear that they were going down the chimney in any numbers. (It was hard to tell whether birds went down the chimney or behind the church, but it appeared that most were doing the latter.) Unfortunately, we had to get to a movie at the World at 7:30, so left the swifts at 7:23, before we could see if they'd actually go down the chimney in numbers.
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > The following evening (Sept. 25), I returned to the site, arriving at about 7:30. The swifts were again circling, but there numbers appeared to be about half of what they were the previous night—perhaps a different flock, or perhaps many had already gone to roost. This time, the loop in which they were flying always seemed to include the space right above the church. Again, birds passing over the chimney would drop down and flutter a bit, as though checking it out, but would usually resume circling. After a while, though, it appeared that they were starting to go down. It looked like 4–6 birds would drop down into the chimney; and, after that, birds would dip down to check, but no one else would descend for a little while, until another handful went down. My conjecture is that birds that flew down the chimney took some time to find footholds, and until they did, were beating their wings; if additional birds had flown down during this time, they would've interfered with one another, and possibly the whole bunch would've fallen to the bottom. Once this started, the number of circling birds seemed to decline surprisingly quickly, and the last of them were gone by 8 p.m.; presumably, down the chimney, though it didn't seem as though I'd seen that many going into it.
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > Other accounts make it sound as though large numbers of swifts pour down a chimney, unlike my birds, which seemed to go down a handful at a time. Maybe the St. Luke's flue is narrower than the brick chimney would suggest, and there's not room for all that many birds to go down at once?
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > William Flack
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > Kearney
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
>
>
>
>
>
>
Date: 9/30/26 6:02 am From: Jerry Toll via groups.io <carolnhattie...> Subject: Re: [NEBirds] Chimney Swift roost in Kearney
Thanks for the reminder! We see lots of Chimney Swifts migrating at the
Hitchcock Hawkwatch. Also the Florence area business district hosts roost
for them.
Jerry Toll
On Wed, Sep 30, 2026 at 6:04 AM flyingcarlini via groups.io <flyingcarlini=
<yahoo.com...> wrote:
> Thanks William, Diane, and Robin for the reminder that September and early
> October is the time to view impressive numbers of Chimney Swifts streaming
> into our local chimneys to roost at night. The big old brick chimneys that
> shelter anywhere from dozens to hundreds of CHSWs moving through this time
> of year won't be around forever and unfortunately the new chimneys exclude
> entry, so It's great to document these crucial chimney roost sites on eBird
> and bring to light a largely out of sight/out of mind phenomenon featuring
> a vulnerable species that's in decline.
>
> Interesting to think of them entering in groups of 4-6, maybe family
> groups? Some of our photos have shown rows in flight of similarly sized
> groups during pre-entry chimney flyovers.
>
> Regarding their hesitation to enter a chimney, in addition to entry likely
> being slowed as other arrivals clear out of the way, wind seems to be a
> factor that can result in birds aborting entry attempts before finally
> dropping in. Sometimes it diminishes at nightfall, so maybe some delay
> their entry? Last year during a large flock entry one particular evening,
> several birds actually whacked HARD against the lip of the chimney while
> trying to enter (presumably inexperienced juvs) apparently due to wind and
> possibly a subpar approach direction of the circling flock. It looked
> brutal but they all appeared to ricochet off and stay airborne somehow. 2
> nights ago, we tallied 285 entering the spacious chimney at Westminster
> church on South St. & Sheridan Blvd. during calm conditions which allowed
> them to more easily hit the bullseye and drop straight down in an orderly
> controlled flow.
>
> -Shari Schwartz & John Carlini, Lincoln
>
>
>
>
>
>
> On Saturday, September 26, 2026 at 09:58:32 PM CDT, Robin Harding via
> groups.io <pine2siskin4...> wrote:
>
>
>
> Nebraska birders,
>
> I had never watched Chimney Swifts go to their night roost. It was very
> cool to experience part of it with Bill Flack on September 24. It's too
> bad that we couldn't stay until the last swift descended into the chimney.
> I was unable to go back the next evening but I did this evening, September
> 26, arriving at about 7:10, when there were only five swifts circling the
> chimney. For a while, I thought that the swifts were using a different
> chimney this evening or that they had migrated south.
>
> The number of swifts slowly grew and they continued to circle the church's
> chimney. I thought that I saw a few swifts drop down into the chimney but
> as Bill wrote, it was difficult to determine if the swifts were going into
> the chimney or dropping down behind it. It was hard to estimate the total
> number of swifts since I couldn't see the whole flock but I estimated 60
> swifts. The swirling mass of swifts continued. When it was almost too
> dark for me to see the birds, it looked like many swifts were dropping into
> the chimney but many were still circling. When I stopped hearing them
> twitter, I assumed that they were all in the chimney. It was about 8:00.
>
> My experience was very similar to Bill's and Diane's.
>
> Robin Harding
> Shelton, Nebr.
>
> On Sat, Sep 26, 2026 at 9:11 PM dt via groups.io <dtandelsie=
> <yahoo.com...> wrote:
>
> William, this actually sounds similar to what I saw in Gothenburg on
> August 29th. The darker it got, the more rapidly they disappeared down the
> chimney, but as some descended, others flew by and circled around,
> eventually also descending. I watched approx. 200 enter the single chimney
> in approximately 17 minutes. https://ebird.org/checkli.st/S388114605 > Quite a sight ! It would be great if birders who live near these chimneys
> used as migration roosts monitored them in late summer early fall!
> Diane Thomas in Laramie, WY
>
> Yahoo Mail: Search, Organize, Conquer
> <https://mail.onelink.me/107872968?pid=nativeplacement&c=US_Acquisition_YMktg_315_SearchOrgConquer_EmailSignature&af_sub1=Acquisition&af_sub2=US_YMktg&af_sub3=&af_sub4=100002039&af_sub5=C01_Email_Static_&af_ios_store_cpp=0c38e4b0-a27e-40f9-a211-f4e2de32ab91&af_android_url=https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?<id...>&listing=search_organize_conquer> >
> On Sat, Sep 26, 2026 at 9:36 PM, William Flack via groups.io
> <sparvophile...> wrote:
>
> On Thursday evening, Sept. 24, Robin Harding and I watched *Chimney
> Swifts* circling over the block with St. Luke's and Central Elementary. I
> estimated the size of the flock as c. 200 birds. The orbit sometimes moved
> away, but generally included the St. Luke's chimney; and often, as swifts
> flew over the chimney, they fluttered a bit or dropped as though checking
> it out. However, it didn't appear that they were going down the chimney in
> any numbers. (It was hard to tell whether birds went down the chimney or
> behind the church, but it appeared that most were doing the latter.)
> Unfortunately, we had to get to a movie at the World at 7:30, so left the
> swifts at 7:23, before we could see if they'd actually go down the chimney
> in numbers.
>
>
>
> The following evening (Sept. 25), I returned to the site, arriving at
> about 7:30. The swifts were again circling, but there numbers appeared to
> be about half of what they were the previous night—perhaps a different
> flock, or perhaps many had already gone to roost. This time, the loop in
> which they were flying always seemed to include the space right above the
> church. Again, birds passing over the chimney would drop down and flutter a
> bit, as though checking it out, but would usually resume circling. After a
> while, though, it appeared that they were starting to go down. It looked
> like 4–6 birds would drop down into the chimney; and, after that, birds
> would dip down to check, but no one else would descend for a little while,
> until another handful went down. My conjecture is that birds that flew down
> the chimney took some time to find footholds, and until they did, were
> beating their wings; if additional birds had flown down during this time,
> they would've interfered with one another, and possibly the whole bunch
> would've fallen to the bottom. Once this started, the number of circling
> birds seemed to decline surprisingly quickly, and the last of them were
> gone by 8 p.m.; presumably, down the chimney, though it didn't seem as
> though I'd seen that many going into it.
>
>
>
> Other accounts make it sound as though large numbers of swifts pour down a
> chimney, unlike my birds, which seemed to go down a handful at a time.
> Maybe the St. Luke's flue is narrower than the brick chimney would suggest,
> and there's not room for all that many birds to go down at once?
>
>
>
> William Flack
>
> Kearney
>
>
>
>
Date: 9/30/26 4:04 am From: flyingcarlini via groups.io <flyingcarlini...> Subject: Re: [NEBirds] Chimney Swift roost in Kearney
Thanks William, Diane, and Robin for the reminder that September and early October is the time to view impressive numbers of Chimney Swifts streaming into our local chimneys to roost at night. The big old brick chimneys that shelter anywhere from dozens to hundreds of CHSWs moving through this time of year won't be around forever and unfortunately the new chimneys exclude entry, so It's great to document these crucial chimney roost sites on eBird and bring to light a largely out of sight/out of mind phenomenon featuring a vulnerable species that's in decline.
Interesting to think of them entering in groups of 4-6, maybe family groups? Some of our photos have shown rows in flight of similarly sized groups during pre-entry chimney flyovers.
Regarding their hesitation to enter a chimney, in addition to entry likely being slowed as other arrivals clear out of the way, wind seems to be a factor that can result in birds aborting entry attempts before finally dropping in. Sometimes it diminishes at nightfall, so maybe some delay their entry? Last year during a large flock entry one particular evening, several birds actually whacked HARD against the lip of the chimney while trying to enter (presumably inexperienced juvs) apparently due to wind and possibly a subpar approach direction of the circling flock. It looked brutal but they all appeared to ricochet off and stay airborne somehow. 2 nights ago, we tallied 285 entering the spacious chimney at Westminster church on South St. & Sheridan Blvd. during calm conditions which allowed them to more easily hit the bullseye and drop straight down in an orderly controlled flow.
-Shari Schwartz & John Carlini, Lincoln
On Saturday, September 26, 2026 at 09:58:32 PM CDT, Robin Harding via groups.io <pine2siskin4...> wrote:
Nebraska birders,
I had never watched Chimney Swifts go to their night roost. It was very cool to experience part of it with Bill Flack on September 24. It's too bad that we couldn't stay until the last swift descended into the chimney. I was unable to go back the next evening but I did this evening, September 26, arriving at about 7:10, when there were only five swifts circling the chimney. For a while, I thought that the swifts were using a different chimney this evening or that they had migrated south.
The number of swifts slowly grew and they continued to circle the church's chimney. I thought that I saw a few swifts drop down into the chimney but as Bill wrote, it was difficult to determine if the swifts were going into the chimney or dropping down behind it. It was hard to estimate the total number of swifts since I couldn't see the whole flock but I estimated 60 swifts. The swirling mass of swifts continued. When it was almost too dark for me to see the birds, it looked like many swifts were dropping into the chimney but many were still circling. When I stopped hearing them twitter, I assumed that they were all in the chimney. It was about 8:00.
My experience was very similar to Bill's and Diane's.
Robin Harding
Shelton, Nebr.
On Sat, Sep 26, 2026 at 9:11 PM dt via groups.io <dtandelsie...> wrote:
William, this actually sounds similar to what I saw in Gothenburg on August 29th. The darker it got, the more rapidly they disappeared down the chimney, but as some descended, others flew by and circled around, eventually also descending. I watched approx. 200 enter the single chimney in approximately 17 minutes. https://ebird.org/checkli.st/S388114605 Quite a sight ! It would be great if birders who live near these chimneys used as migration roosts monitored them in late summer early fall!
Diane Thomas in Laramie, WY
Yahoo Mail: Search, Organize, Conquer
On Sat, Sep 26, 2026 at 9:36 PM, William Flack via groups.io<sparvophile...> wrote:
On Thursday evening, Sept. 24, Robin Harding and I watched Chimney Swifts circling over the block with St. Luke's and Central Elementary. I estimated the size of the flock as c. 200 birds. The orbit sometimes moved away, but generally included the St. Luke's chimney; and often, as swifts flew over the chimney, they fluttered a bit or dropped as though checking it out. However, it didn't appear that they were going down the chimney in any numbers. (It was hard to tell whether birds went down the chimney or behind the church, but it appeared that most were doing the latter.) Unfortunately, we had to get to a movie at the World at 7:30, so left the swifts at 7:23, before we could see if they'd actually go down the chimney in numbers.
The following evening (Sept. 25), I returned to the site, arriving at about 7:30. The swifts were again circling, but there numbers appeared to be about half of what they were the previous night—perhaps a different flock, or perhaps many had already gone to roost. This time, the loop in which they were flying always seemed to include the space right above the church. Again, birds passing over the chimney would drop down and flutter a bit, as though checking it out, but would usually resume circling. After a while, though, it appeared that they were starting to go down. It looked like 4–6 birds would drop down into the chimney; and, after that, birds would dip down to check, but no one else would descend for a little while, until another handful went down. My conjecture is that birds that flew down the chimney took some time to find footholds, and until they did, were beating their wings; if additional birds had flown down during this time, they would've interfered with one another, and possibly the whole bunch would've fallen to the bottom. Once this started, the number of circling birds seemed to decline surprisingly quickly, and the last of them were gone by 8 p.m.; presumably, down the chimney, though it didn't seem as though I'd seen that many going into it.
Other accounts make it sound as though large numbers of swifts pour down a chimney, unlike my birds, which seemed to go down a handful at a time. Maybe the St. Luke's flue is narrower than the brick chimney would suggest, and there's not room for all that many birds to go down at once?
Date: 9/26/26 7:58 pm From: Robin Harding via groups.io <pine2siskin4...> Subject: Re: [NEBirds] Chimney Swift roost in Kearney
Nebraska birders,
I had never watched Chimney Swifts go to their night roost. It was very
cool to experience part of it with Bill Flack on September 24. It's too
bad that we couldn't stay until the last swift descended into the chimney.
I was unable to go back the next evening but I did this evening, September
26, arriving at about 7:10, when there were only five swifts circling the
chimney. For a while, I thought that the swifts were using a different
chimney this evening or that they had migrated south.
The number of swifts slowly grew and they continued to circle the church's
chimney. I thought that I saw a few swifts drop down into the chimney but
as Bill wrote, it was difficult to determine if the swifts were going into
the chimney or dropping down behind it. It was hard to estimate the total
number of swifts since I couldn't see the whole flock but I estimated 60
swifts. The swirling mass of swifts continued. When it was almost too
dark for me to see the birds, it looked like many swifts were dropping into
the chimney but many were still circling. When I stopped hearing them
twitter, I assumed that they were all in the chimney. It was about 8:00.
My experience was very similar to Bill's and Diane's.
Robin Harding
Shelton, Nebr.
On Sat, Sep 26, 2026 at 9:11 PM dt via groups.io <dtandelsie=
<yahoo.com...> wrote:
> William, this actually sounds similar to what I saw in Gothenburg on
> August 29th. The darker it got, the more rapidly they disappeared down the
> chimney, but as some descended, others flew by and circled around,
> eventually also descending. I watched approx. 200 enter the single chimney
> in approximately 17 minutes. https://ebird.org/checkli.st/S388114605 > Quite a sight ! It would be great if birders who live near these chimneys
> used as migration roosts monitored them in late summer early fall!
> Diane Thomas in Laramie, WY
>
> Yahoo Mail: Search, Organize, Conquer
> <https://mail.onelink.me/107872968?pid=nativeplacement&c=US_Acquisition_YMktg_315_SearchOrgConquer_EmailSignature&af_sub1=Acquisition&af_sub2=US_YMktg&af_sub3=&af_sub4=100002039&af_sub5=C01_Email_Static_&af_ios_store_cpp=0c38e4b0-a27e-40f9-a211-f4e2de32ab91&af_android_url=https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?<id...>&listing=search_organize_conquer> >
> On Sat, Sep 26, 2026 at 9:36 PM, William Flack via groups.io
> <sparvophile...> wrote:
>
> On Thursday evening, Sept. 24, Robin Harding and I watched *Chimney
> Swifts* circling over the block with St. Luke's and Central Elementary. I
> estimated the size of the flock as c. 200 birds. The orbit sometimes moved
> away, but generally included the St. Luke's chimney; and often, as swifts
> flew over the chimney, they fluttered a bit or dropped as though checking
> it out. However, it didn't appear that they were going down the chimney in
> any numbers. (It was hard to tell whether birds went down the chimney or
> behind the church, but it appeared that most were doing the latter.)
> Unfortunately, we had to get to a movie at the World at 7:30, so left the
> swifts at 7:23, before we could see if they'd actually go down the chimney
> in numbers.
>
>
>
> The following evening (Sept. 25), I returned to the site, arriving at
> about 7:30. The swifts were again circling, but there numbers appeared to
> be about half of what they were the previous night—perhaps a different
> flock, or perhaps many had already gone to roost. This time, the loop in
> which they were flying always seemed to include the space right above the
> church. Again, birds passing over the chimney would drop down and flutter a
> bit, as though checking it out, but would usually resume circling. After a
> while, though, it appeared that they were starting to go down. It looked
> like 4–6 birds would drop down into the chimney; and, after that, birds
> would dip down to check, but no one else would descend for a little while,
> until another handful went down. My conjecture is that birds that flew down
> the chimney took some time to find footholds, and until they did, were
> beating their wings; if additional birds had flown down during this time,
> they would've interfered with one another, and possibly the whole bunch
> would've fallen to the bottom. Once this started, the number of circling
> birds seemed to decline surprisingly quickly, and the last of them were
> gone by 8 p.m.; presumably, down the chimney, though it didn't seem as
> though I'd seen that many going into it.
>
>
>
> Other accounts make it sound as though large numbers of swifts pour down a
> chimney, unlike my birds, which seemed to go down a handful at a time.
> Maybe the St. Luke's flue is narrower than the brick chimney would suggest,
> and there's not room for all that many birds to go down at once?
>
>
>
> William Flack
>
> Kearney
>
>
>
>
Date: 9/26/26 7:11 pm From: dt via groups.io <dtandelsie...> Subject: Re: [NEBirds] Chimney Swift roost in Kearney
William, this actually sounds similar to what I saw in Gothenburg on August 29th. The darker it got, the more rapidly they disappeared down the chimney, but as some descended, others flew by and circled around, eventually also descending. I watched approx. 200 enter the single chimney in approximately 17 minutes. https://ebird.org/checkli.st/S388114605 Quite a sight ! It would be great if birders who live near these chimneys used as migration roosts monitored them in late summer early fall!
Diane Thomas in Laramie, WY
Yahoo Mail: Search, Organize, Conquer
On Sat, Sep 26, 2026 at 9:36 PM, William Flack via groups.io<sparvophile...> wrote:
On Thursday evening, Sept. 24, Robin Harding and I watched Chimney Swifts circling over the block with St. Luke's and Central Elementary. I estimated the size of the flock as c. 200 birds. The orbit sometimes moved away, but generally included the St. Luke's chimney; and often, as swifts flew over the chimney, they fluttered a bit or dropped as though checking it out. However, it didn't appear that they were going down the chimney in any numbers. (It was hard to tell whether birds went down the chimney or behind the church, but it appeared that most were doing the latter.) Unfortunately, we had to get to a movie at the World at 7:30, so left the swifts at 7:23, before we could see if they'd actually go down the chimney in numbers.
The following evening (Sept. 25), I returned to the site, arriving at about 7:30. The swifts were again circling, but there numbers appeared to be about half of what they were the previous night—perhaps a different flock, or perhaps many had already gone to roost. This time, the loop in which they were flying always seemed to include the space right above the church. Again, birds passing over the chimney would drop down and flutter a bit, as though checking it out, but would usually resume circling. After a while, though, it appeared that they were starting to go down. It looked like 4–6 birds would drop down into the chimney; and, after that, birds would dip down to check, but no one else would descend for a little while, until another handful went down. My conjecture is that birds that flew down the chimney took some time to find footholds, and until they did, were beating their wings; if additional birds had flown down during this time, they would've interfered with one another, and possibly the whole bunch would've fallen to the bottom. Once this started, the number of circling birds seemed to decline surprisingly quickly, and the last of them were gone by 8 p.m.; presumably, down the chimney, though it didn't seem as though I'd seen that many going into it.
Other accounts make it sound as though large numbers of swifts pour down a chimney, unlike my birds, which seemed to go down a handful at a time. Maybe the St. Luke's flue is narrower than the brick chimney would suggest, and there's not room for all that many birds to go down at once?
Date: 9/26/26 6:36 pm From: William Flack via groups.io <sparvophile...> Subject: [NEBirds] Chimney Swift roost in Kearney
On Thursday evening, Sept. 24, Robin Harding and I watched *Chimney Swifts* circling over the block with St. Luke's and Central Elementary. I estimated the size of the flock as c. 200 birds. The orbit sometimes moved away, but generally included the St. Luke's chimney; and often, as swifts flew over the chimney, they fluttered a bit or dropped as though checking it out. However, it didn't appear that they were going down the chimney in any numbers. (It was hard to tell whether birds went down the chimney or behind the church, but it appeared that most were doing the latter.) Unfortunately, we had to get to a movie at the World at 7:30, so left the swifts at 7:23, before we could see if they'd actually go down the chimney in numbers.
The following evening (Sept. 25), I returned to the site, arriving at about 7:30. The swifts were again circling, but there numbers appeared to be about half of what they were the previous night—perhaps a different flock, or perhaps many had already gone to roost. This time, the loop in which they were flying always seemed to include the space right above the church. Again, birds passing over the chimney would drop down and flutter a bit, as though checking it out, but would usually resume circling. After a while, though, it appeared that they were starting to go down. It looked like 4–6 birds would drop down into the chimney; and, after that, birds would dip down to check, but no one else would descend for a little while, until another handful went down. My conjecture is that birds that flew down the chimney took some time to find footholds, and until they did, were beating their wings; if additional birds had flown down during this time, they would've interfered with one another, and possibly the whole bunch would've fallen to the bottom. Once this started, the number of circling birds seemed to decline surprisingly quickly, and the last of them were gone by 8 p.m.; presumably, down the chimney, though it didn't seem as though I'd seen that many going into it.
Other accounts make it sound as though large numbers of swifts pour down a chimney, unlike my birds, which seemed to go down a handful at a time. Maybe the St. Luke's flue is narrower than the brick chimney would suggest, and there's not room for all that many birds to go down at once?
Date: 9/26/26 4:44 pm From: Kianna Burtle via groups.io <kiannaburtle...> Subject: [NEBirds] Chadron State Park Week 4 Banding Recap (9/22-9/26)
NEBirders,
The first full week at the new location has gone well with an increase in numbers and diversity! Chadron Creek flows through the banding station which makes this an excellent spot for spotting migrating birds! Here are this weeks totals:
The station will be open this week Tuesday through Saturday (weather permitting) and is now located at the Campground trailhead across from the tennis court in Chadron State Park! This is an exciting time to come visit the brand new location and see what birds stop by! Anyone is welcome to visit while the nets are open from 6:30am-12:30pm (weather permitting), hope to see you there!
Kianna Burtle
Bander, Chadron State Park
Bird Conservancy of the Rockies
Date: 9/26/26 4:44 pm From: cronakelsey via groups.io <cronakelsey...> Subject: [NEBirds] Bird Conservancy of the Rockies Banding Report - Wildcat Hills Station 9/22/2026 - 9/26/2026
Hello folks!
**
**
I’ve got a weekly update for you from the Wildcat Hills banding station. Less than ideal conditions including windy, wet, and cool weather caused the station to be slower this week. However, numbers were decent and three new species were added to the seasonal list! I banded 98 new birds of 18 species.
**
**
Red Crossbill: 27
Cassin’s Finch: 17
House Finch: 11
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Audubon’s): 9
Townsend’s Solitaire: 5
Spotted Towhee: 5
Red-breasted Nuthatch: 4
Wilson’s Warbler: 3
Ruby-crowned Kinglet: 3 *new species*
Orange-crowned Warbler: 3
Chipping Sparrow: 3
Pink-sided Junco: 2
Pine Siskin: 1
Townsend’s Warbler: 1
Lesser Goldfinch: 1
Pygmy Nuthatch: 1
Field Sparrow: 1 *new species*
American Robin: 1 *new species*
**
**
A slower week but still full of surprises. The number of Cassin’s Finches have continued to grow, and Townsend’s Solitaires are one of my favorite species, so I’ve felt quite spoiled with how many I’ve caught! Additionally, the Field Sparrow was a nice surprise! It was my first time banding this species.
**
**
There were a decent number of visitors this week. Two elementary schools brought young learners to see birds up close, and a group of undergraduate wildlife students from UNL spent a morning learning about the operation of the station. Additionally, we celebrated 20 years of banding at Wildcat Hills today! It was a great week to share bird banding with so many people.
**
**
Our schedule for the coming weeks looks a bit different. Weather permitting, the station will be open on 9/29 - 10/5. Nets will open around 6:35am and will close at 12:35pm. The station will be closed 10/6 and 10/7, but will be open 10/8 - 10/10. The station will close on the 10th, so get your visits in while you still can!
Date: 9/22/26 1:53 pm From: Robin Harding via groups.io <pine2siskin4...> Subject: [NEBirds] Hall County Park
Nebraska birders,
On Tuesday, September 22, I went to Hall County Park again. The park has great habitat and there have been new and different birds seen every day recently. I met Steve Morris in the park and we birded for a couple of hours. As usual, the birding was very slow until we came upon a small group of warblers. We saw a Nashville, a few Orange-crowned and about five Blackpoll Warblers. We were able to follow them for a while but then we lost them.
After lunch, I went back to Hall County Park because it was on my way home and I thought that maybe Colleen Childers might be there. I waited for a few minutes and there was Colleen. We birded together for about a half hour. We saw a Warbling Vireo whose underparts were very yellow but I couldn't see a dark lore, so I couldn't call it a Philadelphia Vireo. We also found a small group of warblers and were able to identify an Orange-crowned and a Bay-breasted Warbler which was a female/immature. Colleen was able to get photos.
The Bay-breasted Warbler is the 200th species that I have identified in Hall County.
Date: 9/21/26 3:55 pm From: Kianna Burtle via groups.io <kiannaburtle...> Subject: [NEBirds] Chadron State Park Week 3 Banding Recap (9/13-9/18)
NEBirders!
There were some exciting changes to the Chadron State Park banding station this week. From 9/13-9/15 the station ran normally from the Sawmill shelter, but as of 9/16 the banding station has been moved to a different location in the park! With more dense vegetation and a flowing creek, the new site has already given us more birds and more diversity!! Here are this weeks totals, including the last of the Sawmill shelter numbers and the newest Creek location numbers:
The station will be open this week Tuesday through Saturday (weather permitting) and is now located at the Campground trailhead across from the tennis court in Chadron State Park! This is an exciting time to come visit the brand new location and see what birds we will be banding there! Anyone is welcome to stop by at any time while the nets are open from 6:25am-12:25pm (weather permitting) , hope to see you there!
Kianna Burtle
Bander, Chadron State Park
Bird Conservancy of the Rockies
Date: 9/20/26 4:28 pm From: Tobin Brown via groups.io <tobinjbrown...> Subject: [NEBirds] Potential state first Vega Gull!
Nebraska birders,
After the recent taxonomic split of the Herring Gull into 3 species, Vega Gull had been on my mind for a potential next state first.
Yesterday, Judson found an intriguing candidate at Pawnee Lake in Lancaster county. It displayed a dark eye, darker mantle (slightly lighter than FRGU), pink legs, and a thick white edge to the secondaries in flight. After tossing around multiple potential IDs including a handful of hybrids, we seemed to land on Great Black-backed x American Herring Gull Hybrid, but that ID didn't quite feel right to me.
After more discussion, and sending it to Amar Ayyash (author of the Gull Guide), we believe we might have the state first Vega Gull! I included his comments in my checklist
Unfortunately, the bird took off, caught a thermal, and disappeared while I was watching it, around 11:45.
Of course, there will be more discussion and a vote by the NOURC, but I'm reporting it as Vega right now. There's a chance it could return to a nearby roost at Pawnee or Branched Oak!
Date: 9/20/26 3:36 pm From: Robin Harding via groups.io <pine2siskin4...> Subject: [NEBirds] Hall and Howard Counties
Nebraska birders,
My friends Jessica Gorecki, Bill Flack and I birded in Hall County Park on Sunday, September 20. While we were there, we bumped into Colleen Childers, Steve Morris and Will. Soon after we started, we flushed a small group of Black-crowned Night-Herons from treetops. I was surprised to see Night-Herons in a city park and in trees. They are a new county bird for me.
The park was very quiet for most of the walk. We saw a few of the usual birds. We saw four or five hummingbirds at the feeders. They all appeared to be Ruby-throated. We saw one young male Rose-breasted Grosbeak. Finally, when we were about to quit, we saw one warbler. We could not identify it for sure. I think it was a young female Black-throated Green Warbler. Its throat, breast, belly and under-tail were white. There were two blurry gray streaks on each flank. It had two white wing bars on each wing. Its face pattern was like the male Black-throated Green Warbler that we saw a couple of days ago.
After lunch, Jessica and I walked the trail at Dannebrog in Howard County. We started near the water tower. We walked by the cemetery, around the sewage lagoons, into the woods, around the north side of town and back to the car. The birding was very quiet here as well. We did hear an Eastern Wood-Pewee and saw an Eastern Phoebe.
Date: 9/19/26 1:57 pm From: cronakelsey via groups.io <cronakelsey...> Subject: [NEBirds] Bird Conservancy of the Rockies Banding Report - Wildcat Hills Station 9/14/2026 - 9/19/2026
Hello Birders!
**
**
Checking in here with a weekly update from the Wildcat Hills station. Unfortunately more bad weather this week caused the early closing or limited opening of the station resulting in lower numbers of birds caught. I banded a total of 73 birds of 16 different species, including one new species for the season.
**
**
Red Crossbill: 24
Spotted Towhee: 12
House Finch: 11
Red-breasted Nuthatch: 5
Orange-crowned Warbler: 3
Pine Siskin: 2
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Audubon’s): 2
Pygmy Nuthatch: 2
Swainson’s Thrush: 2 *new species*
Western Tanager: 2
Pink-sided Junco: 2
Cassin’s Finch: 2
Wilson’s Warbler: 1
Lesser Goldfinch: 1
Townsend’s Warbler: 1
Chipping Sparrow: 1
**
**
The station will be open Tuesday (9/22) through Saturday (9/26) next week. Nets will open at 6:30am and will close at 12:30pm, weather permitting. Come visit and enjoy the birds with me!
Date: 9/19/26 12:48 pm From: Bill Kaempfer via groups.io <William.Kaempfer...> Subject: [NEBirds] Fw: [cobirds] VARIEGATED FLYCATCHER at Stalker Lake, Yuma County 9/19/26
NE Birders, Dan Maynard found a likely Variegated Flycatcher today at Stalker Lake just west of Wray, CO (about 40-50 miles west of Benkleman, NE on US 6).
________________________________
From: <cobirds...> <cobirds...> on behalf of Daniel Maynard <dmaynar...>
Sent: Saturday, September 19, 2026 2:45 PM
To: CoBirds <cobirds...>
Subject: [cobirds] VARIEGATED FLYCATCHER at Stalker Lake, Yuma County 9/19/26
[External email - use caution]
Folks,
I found what appears to be a VARIEGATED FLYCATCHER at Stalker Lake in Yuma County. It's been in the area of (40.0866284, -102.2765109) for a while now, mostly perching high in olive snags. Mediocre iPhone photos below
Date: 9/19/26 11:37 am From: Jacob C. Cooper via groups.io <cooperj2...> Subject: Re: [NEBirds] Philadelphia Vireo
Hi Robin,
The Philadelphia Vireo is part of the gilvus clade of Warbling Vireos, which now includes the two Warbling-Vireos as well as the Neotropical Brown-capped Vireo. Philadelphia appears to be most closely related to Brown-capped, but it I know that there is more work that should be done on Brown-capped, especially given its broad range in the Neotropics. (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ympev.2014.07.021)
Philadelphia Vireos mimic Red-eyed Vireos on the breeding range, as a form of social mimicry (similar to Downy + Hairy Woodpecker). From Birds of the World, my emphasis added:
"Philadelphia Vireo imitates the song of Red-eyed Vireo, although the former's song is structurally less complex (Rice 1978b, Rice 1978c). Unlike Red-eyed Vireo, Philadelphia Vireo discriminates between its song, that of Red-eyed Vireo, and songs with modified syntax (Rice 1978b). Playback experiments confirm that because Philadelphia Vireo is considerably smaller than Red-eyed Vireo, it has an incentive to avoid interspecific hostilities (Rice 1978b). The similarity in songs of the 2 species constitutes a form of social convergence in which Philadelphia Vireo can advertise/defend territories without having to confront Red-eyed Vireos physically. Social mimicry thereby maintains interspecific territorial integrity (Rice 1978b)." (https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.phivir.01)
Assistant Professor, University of Nebraska at Kearney
Bruner Hall of Sciences, Room 321
2401 11th Avenue
Kearney, NE 68849-1130
Research Associate, Field Museum, Chicago
Citizen of the Cherokee Nation
From: <NEBirds...> <NEBirds...> on behalf of Robin Harding via groups.io <pine2siskin4...>
Date: Saturday, September 19, 2026 at 08:19
To: <NEBirds...> <NEBirds...>
Subject: [NEBirds] Philadelphia Vireo
Caution: Non-NU Email
Nebraska birders,
When I reviewed my comments on the Philadelphia Vireo seen at Hall County Park, I realized that I had made a mistake. In my comments, I wrote "the eye line was darker than red-eyed vireo." What I had intended to write is "the eye line was darker than Warbling Vireo." I edited my comments on my ebird list.
In the past, I may have seen a Philadelphia Vireo but thought it was a Warbling Vireo. I'm glad that I was with other birders who had some experience with Philadelphia Vireo.
Do you know where I can read more about vireo evolution? Is Philadelphia Vireo a hybrid that has become a species? It looks like a cross between Warbling and Red-eyed. I'm not familiar with Philadelphia's song, but I've read that it is very similar to Red-eyed. So it looks like a Warbling Vireo and sings like a Red-eyed Vireo. What's going on here?
Date: 9/19/26 6:18 am From: Robin Harding via groups.io <pine2siskin4...> Subject: [NEBirds] Philadelphia Vireo
Nebraska birders,
When I reviewed my comments on the Philadelphia Vireo seen at Hall County Park, I realized that I had made a mistake. In my comments, I wrote "the eye line was darker than red-eyed vireo." What I had intended to write is "the eye line was darker than Warbling Vireo." I edited my comments on my ebird list.
In the past, I may have seen a Philadelphia Vireo but thought it was a Warbling Vireo. I'm glad that I was with other birders who had some experience with Philadelphia Vireo.
Do you know where I can read more about vireo evolution? Is Philadelphia Vireo a hybrid that has become a species? It looks like a cross between Warbling and Red-eyed. I'm not familiar with Philadelphia's song, but I've read that it is very similar to Red-eyed. So it looks like a Warbling Vireo and sings like a Red-eyed Vireo. What's going on here?
Date: 9/18/26 12:23 pm From: Gary Lingle via groups.io <pelicanlingle...> Subject: [NEBirds] Yellow-throated Vireo in Hall County
I found a Yellow-throated Vireo at Hall County Park at about 8:20 this morning. Its back was facing me but I could clearly see its yellow eye rings and yellow throat when it turned its head. The wing bars were also prominent from the back.
I was later joined by a small group of birders but we couldn’t relocate it although we did see a Blue-headed Vireo, 3 Red-eyed Vireos, and 2 Philadelphia Vireos!
Date: 9/17/26 9:21 am From: John W. Hall via groups.io <jwhall2...> Subject: Re: [NEBirds] Black Vulture
Tobin,Good to know. I’ve never had a vulture tumble into my deck before, so was intrigued either way. Thanks for straightening me out. John HallOmaha NE 68137
Date: 9/16/26 5:10 pm From: Tobin Brown via groups.io <tobinjbrown...> Subject: Re: [NEBirds] Black Vulture
I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but based on the brown plumage on the
back, the structure of the head, and the long tail, this appears to be a
juvenile Turkey Vulture. Their gray/black heads can be tricky and have
tripped up many birders before, myself included!
On Wed, Sep 16, 2026 at 6:54 PM John W. Hall via groups.io <jwhall2=
<juno.com...> wrote:
> Nebirders, We had a Black Vulture visit our deck in Millard yesterday
> afternoo. Rachel was able to get a photo of it for verificatio. This is the
> fourth in Nebraska according to Birds of Nebraska Online. It’s the first
> since September 17, 2017, although a few have been seen as close as the
> Hitchcock Hawk Watch in recent years. Heres the picture!
>
> John & Rachel Hall
> Omaha, Nebraska 68137
>
>
>
Date: 9/16/26 4:54 pm From: John W. Hall via groups.io <jwhall2...> Subject: [NEBirds] Black Vulture
Nebirders, We had a Black Vulture visit our deck in Millard yesterday afternoo. Rachel was able to get a photo of it for verificatio. This is the fourth in Nebraska according to Birds of Nebraska Online. It’s the first since September 17, 2017, although a few have been seen as close as the Hitchcock Hawk Watch in recent years. Heres the picture! John & Rachel Hall Omaha, Nebraska 68137
Date: 9/15/26 10:54 pm From: Paul L. Pearson via groups.io <Propearson...> Subject: [NEBirds] NOU Fall 2026 Kearney Meeting Recap
We had record attendance at our NOU 2026 Fall Meeting in Kearney…95 registrants, surpassing the 85 last Fall in Ogallala!! Thanks to all of you for attending, presenting, leading field trips, participating and birding. Along with our usual contingent of longtime NOU members, we had a large number of new attendees. We had several UNK and UNL students and our youngest birder was 8!
The weekend started with a memorial tribute to recently passed NOU member Ed Brogie. We had a great slate of research presentations on Indigo/Lazuli Bunting hybrids, Piping Plover nesting in sandpits, restoring the UNK museum collection, 2026 Nebraska Cuckoo Survey, and internal temperatures of nesting Tree Swallows. Dr. Gabriel and Jennifer Rivera provided the Friday Plenary Lecture “Nebraska Birds: Through Our Lens” and Dr. Letty Reichart of UNK gave a moving Saturday keynote address “Fledging the Nest -A Bird’s Eye View if Ornithological Inquiry and Mentorship.”
Despite slow birding on Friday for early arrivals and weather-related complications for some groups on Saturday AM, the birding heated up for Saturday afternoon and Sunday. Field trips went to Harlan County Reservoir, Howard County, northern Buffalo and Sherman Res., Crane Trust, Rowe Sanctuary and ‘Best of Kearney’ hotspots.
Some of the rarer highlights included a VERY unexpected pair of Cassin's Kingbirds in Dawson County (first record), a first Hall County female Black-throated Blue Warbler and Bay-breasted Warbler at the Kearney Hike/Bike Trail that both refused to be re-found, a Sherman County first Olive-sided Flycatcher, and Philadelphia Vireo at Rowe Sanctuary.
Meeting attendees also received the new NOU sticker-see attachment! I’d like to distribute them to as many NOU members as possible, so when you see me…ask!
Tentative plan for the Spring 2027 Meeting will be late April at a State Park location near Lincoln/Omaha just in time for a passerine migration explosion. Could it be another attendance record-setter? Who do you want to see as a featured speaker?
Please email me if you have any feedback regarding the Kearney meeting, positive or negative. If you have any suggestions for the Spring meeting Program let me know.
--
Paul L. Pearson, PhD
President-Nebraska Ornithologists’ Union
Omaha, NE.
Date: 9/12/26 6:17 pm From: cronakelsey via groups.io <cronakelsey...> Subject: [NEBirds] Bird Conservancy of the Rockies Banding Report - Wildcat Hills Station 9/8/2026 - 9/12/2026
Hi everyone!
****
I’m checking in with a weekly recap from the Wildcat Hills Station. This week brought some windy conditions and hot temperatures resulting in shortened hours of operation. However, I banded a total of 132 birds of 25 species, including 7 new species for the season.
We have broken our record for Cassin’s Finches caught in one season at the station! In 2012 5 were captured. A notable sighting that managed to escape the net was a Green-tailed Towhee - send me luck to net one soon.
Non-bird sightings included the biggest (Woohouse's?) toad I've ever seen. If you know your toads, please chime in.
We had a full week of visitors including school groups on Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday, and folks from the Spring Creek Prairie Audubon Center joined me this morning along with a few other birders. Thank you so much for coming out to enjoy the birds with me!
****
Our schedule is a bit different this week. Weather permitting, the station will be open Monday (9/14) and Wednesday through Saturday (9/16 - 9/19), 6:15am to 12:15pm. The station will be closed Sunday (9/13) and Tuesday (9/15). As a reminder, our last day of operation will be October 10th.
Date: 9/12/26 2:45 pm From: Kianna Burtle via groups.io <kiannaburtle...> Subject: [NEBirds] Chadron State Park Week 2 Banding Recap (8/8-9/12)
NEBirders,
This week has really flown by! It was a windy one which unfortunately meant less time open, but we still saw some migrants! With plans to test out new net locations in the coming weeks, we may be seeing even more migrants real soon, stay tuned for that! Here are this weeks totals:
Brown Thrasher - 1
Northern House Wren - 1
American Robin - 1
Wilson’s Warbler - 2
Black-capped Chickadee - 1
Red-breasted Nuthatch - 5
Lincoln's Sparrow - 1
Swainson's Thrush - 3
The station will be open at the Sawmill shelter tomorrow (9/13) through next Wednesday (9/16) (weather permitting). Come up and see some birds with me, anyone is welcome and nets are open from about 6:15a-12:15p if the wind allows it!
Kianna Burtle
Bander, Chadron State Park
Bird Conservancy of the Rockies
Date: 9/10/26 1:52 pm From: Jorgensen, Joel via groups.io <Joel.Jorgensen...> Subject: Re: [NEBirds] Sandpiper ID help
Thomas:
Looks good as a Least Sandpiper. It's not unusual for juvenile Least Sandpipers to somewhat look like a miniature Pectoral Sandpiper, like this bird. Would not expect a Western to appear this buffy and reddish overall, including on the upper breast. This time of year, it is almost exclusively juvenile Western Sandpiper migrating through. They would appear much plainer overall with the reddish/rust being evident in the scapulars, which is a helpful field mark. Breast, throat and face would be much cleaner and bill would be thicker at the base with the downward kink toward the distal end.
________________________________
From: <NEBirds...> <NEBirds...> on behalf of Thomas Labedz via groups.io <telabedz...>
Sent: Thursday, September 10, 2026 2:08 PM
To: <NEBirds...> <NEBirds...>
Subject: [NEBirds] Sandpiper ID help
Looking for opinions on the ID of the sandpiper in the attached photo. This was at Marsh Wren Community Wetland early afternoon 8 Sep (2 days ago). Originally, I thought it a western sandpiper due to the rufous tones and longer drooping bill. Later, I changed my mind and called it a least sandpiper. Ran it through Merlin photo ID and it came back as a least. Subsequent western sightings at Marsh Wren have me taking another look, and asking for help. Thanks in advance!
Thomas Labedz, Lincoln
Date: 9/10/26 12:35 pm From: Thomas Labedz via groups.io <telabedz...> Subject: [NEBirds] Sandpiper ID help
Looking for opinions on the ID of the sandpiper in the attached photo. This was at Marsh Wren Community Wetland early afternoon 8 Sep (2 days ago). Originally, I thought it a western sandpiper due to the rufous tones and longer drooping bill. Later, I changed my mind and called it a least sandpiper. Ran it through Merlin photo ID and it came back as a least. Subsequent western sightings at Marsh Wren have me taking another look, and asking for help. Thanks in advance! Thomas Labedz, Lincoln
Date: 9/10/26 9:50 am From: Walker, thomas via groups.io <thomas.walker...> Subject: Re: [NEBirds] [sd-birds] Evening Grosbeaks, Rapid City
There was an Evening Grosbeak captured and banded at Wildcat Hills Nature Center (Scotts Bluff County) and there was a Clark’s Nutcracker observed there on 9/3/26 also….
T. J. Walker
Milford, NE
From: <NEBirds...> <NEBirds...> On Behalf Of Ross Silcock
Sent: Thursday, September 10, 2026 11:46 AM
To: NEBIRDS <NEBIRDS...>
Subject: [NEBirds] Fw: [sd-birds] Evening Grosbeaks, Rapid City
From South Dakota's Nancy Drilling...
Ross
Ross Silcock
6810 Tournament Drive,
Houston, TX 77069
Not to steal the thunder from the weekly Outdoor Campus survey posting, but this morning we had a flock of 14 Evening Grosbeaks during the survey. They were in Wilderness Park and, after feeding for a bit on bugs in ash trees, they flew north into the surrounding neighborhoods. Formerly fairly common in Rapid City and Pennington County, they have been gone for at least two to three decades. I moved here in 2011 and these are the first I have ever seen in the county.
Although it was a delight to see these birds, it is also cause for concern. The past month has seen Evening Grosbeaks showing up earlier and in new places in the Black Hills, Clark's Nutcrackers out on the prairie, many scattered reports of Red Crossbills East River, and East River flocks of Pine Siskins. None of these birds should be here until late Fall. This suggests that something is amiss in their boreal forest habitats (in the Rocky Mountains, northern Minnesota, Canada) that is forcing them to wander sooner and farther than normal.
Date: 9/10/26 9:46 am From: Ross Silcock via groups.io <silcock...> Subject: [NEBirds] Fw: [sd-birds] Evening Grosbeaks, Rapid City
From South Dakota's Nancy Drilling...
Ross
Ross Silcock
6810 Tournament Drive,
Houston, TX 77069
Co-editor Birds of Nebraska Online
________________________________
From: <sd-birds...> <sd-birds...> on behalf of N Drilling via groups.io <dril0008...>
Sent: Friday, September 04, 2026 12:51
To: <sd-birds...> <sd-birds...>; <nhbc...> <nhbc...>
Subject: [sd-birds] Evening Grosbeaks, Rapid City
Not to steal the thunder from the weekly Outdoor Campus survey posting, but this morning we had a flock of 14 Evening Grosbeaks during the survey. They were in Wilderness Park and, after feeding for a bit on bugs in ash trees, they flew north into the surrounding neighborhoods. Formerly fairly common in Rapid City and Pennington County, they have been gone for at least two to three decades. I moved here in 2011 and these are the first I have ever seen in the county.
Although it was a delight to see these birds, it is also cause for concern. The past month has seen Evening Grosbeaks showing up earlier and in new places in the Black Hills, Clark's Nutcrackers out on the prairie, many scattered reports of Red Crossbills East River, and East River flocks of Pine Siskins. None of these birds should be here until late Fall. This suggests that something is amiss in their boreal forest habitats (in the Rocky Mountains, northern Minnesota, Canada) that is forcing them to wander sooner and farther than normal.
Date: 9/9/26 8:42 pm From: John W. Hall via groups.io <jwhall2...> Subject: [NEBirds] Fantastic day for fall
Nebirders,Rachel and I had a fantastic afternoon of birding for fall migration. We started with our fifth Empidonax Flycatcher of fall, followed by Blue-headed Vireo, Nashville Warbler and a Swainson’s Thrush. We also had a Northern House Wren, a Downey Woodpecer, and two sub-adult Northern Robins. Rachel got fantastic photos of all but the Wren, which I caught a couple of with my phone. Oh, and two feeding Ruby-throated Hummingbirds also came by and dueled for dominance. John & Rachel HallOmaha, NE 68137
Date: 9/9/26 8:40 am From: flyingcarlini via groups.io <flyingcarlini...> Subject: Re: [NEBirds] Mississippi Kite occurrence
Not sure why above attached map screenshot was so blurry and teeny. Will try resending it pasted which will make it big so hopefully easier to see?
On Wednesday, September 9, 2026 at 10:33:07 AM CDT, flyingcarlini via groups.io <flyingcarlini...> wrote:
Hello fellow NEBirders,We've been reveling in the recent Mississippi Kite (MIKI) explosion phenomenon and hoping it was attributed to colonies south of us having increased enough for post-breeding youngsters to wander north en masse. But the most recent Drought Monitor map shows a terrible drought ranging from severe-extreme-exceptional may possibly have taken a toll on their insect prey and be the driver for a good share of the recent MIKI sightings in the state. Attached is a screen shot that compares a Drought Monitor map from Sep 1 2026 (left) with a map from Sep 2 2025 (right) when there wasn't a drought. The 2026 map has a green dashed box overlaying the heart of the range for the MIKI population west of the Mississippi with highest density circled in solid green based on eBird's MIKI range map. Whether this trend continues next year or is a one-off remains to be seen. -Shari Schwartz & John Carlini, Lincoln
Date: 9/9/26 8:33 am From: flyingcarlini via groups.io <flyingcarlini...> Subject: [NEBirds] Mississippi Kite occurrence
Hello fellow NEBirders,
We've been reveling in the recent Mississippi Kite (MIKI) explosion phenomenon and hoping it was attributed to colonies south of us having increased enough for post-breeding youngsters to wander north en masse. But the most recent Drought Monitor map shows a terrible drought ranging from severe-extreme-exceptional may possibly have taken a toll on their insect prey and be the driver for a good share of the recent MIKI sightings in the state. Attached is a screen shot that compares a Drought Monitor map from Sep 1 2026 (left) with a map from Sep 2 2025 (right) when there wasn't a drought. The 2026 map has a green dashed box overlaying the heart of the range for the MIKI population west of the Mississippi with highest density circled in solid green based on eBird's MIKI range map. Whether this trend continues next year or is a one-off remains to be seen.
Date: 9/7/26 5:38 pm From: Don and Shirley Maas via groups.io <snowbirds2012...> Subject: Re: [NEBirds] Valley County
Thanks for the report Robin
Don Maas
Mesa, AZ
Maricopa County
>
> On Sep 7, 2026 at 4:06 PM, <Robin Harding via groups.io (mailto:<pine2siskin4...>)> wrote:
>
>
>
>
> Nebraska birders,
>
> On September 07, Bill Flack and I visited Rita Cunha in Ord. She has been seeing a couple Ruby-throated Hummingbirds at her feeders. The birds didn't disappoint us, giving us a good show. As usual, they spent more time chasing each other around the yard than drinking from the feeders.
>
> Rita took us to a place near Ord where she had seen a pair of Barn Owls with young. When we arrived, we saw one of the adults standing in the opening of a hole in a tall dirt bank. Soon, a young owl came into view beside the adult. It was very cool!
>
> Our next destination was a Prairie Dog town about two miles down a very minimum maintenance road. There were a few spots along the "road" that we weren't sure if we could get through. Bill managed it very well. We watched the dog town for forty minutes. Bill spotted a Say's Phoebe and got his scope on it so that Rita and I could also see it. Unfortunately, we didn't see a Burrowing Owl.
>
> Rita has received permission to enter the area with Ord's sewage lagoons. We drove slowly around the ponds. We saw three Ruddy Ducks, a Northern Pintail and a female Ring-necked Duck. There was also a Wilson's Snipe that let us get very close before it flew. There were several Spotted Sandpipers and a Forster's Tern. We heard a Marsh Wren and saw a Dickcissel.
>
> We walked some of the trail at Anderson Island but the mosquitos were thick and thirsty. We didn't stay too long.
>
> It was a very nice morning to bird with friends. The Ruby-throated Hummingbird, Barn Owl and Say's Phoebe were new Valley County birds for Bill. The hummingbird and owl were new county birds for me. I don't have all of my historic lists entered into ebird but the Barn Owl is number 400 on my North America life list.
>
> I hope to see you next weekend in Kearney at the Nebraska Ornithologists' Union meeting/birding event.
>
> Robin Harding
> Shelton, Nebr.
>
>
>
Date: 9/7/26 4:06 pm From: Robin Harding via groups.io <pine2siskin4...> Subject: [NEBirds] Valley County
Nebraska birders,
On September 07, Bill Flack and I visited Rita Cunha in Ord. She has been seeing a couple Ruby-throated Hummingbirds at her feeders. The birds didn't disappoint us, giving us a good show. As usual, they spent more time chasing each other around the yard than drinking from the feeders.
Rita took us to a place near Ord where she had seen a pair of Barn Owls with young. When we arrived, we saw one of the adults standing in the opening of a hole in a tall dirt bank. Soon, a young owl came into view beside the adult. It was very cool!
Our next destination was a Prairie Dog town about two miles down a very minimum maintenance road. There were a few spots along the "road" that we weren't sure if we could get through. Bill managed it very well. We watched the dog town for forty minutes. Bill spotted a Say's Phoebe and got his scope on it so that Rita and I could also see it. Unfortunately, we didn't see a Burrowing Owl.
Rita has received permission to enter the area with Ord's sewage lagoons. We drove slowly around the ponds. We saw three Ruddy Ducks, a Northern Pintail and a female Ring-necked Duck. There was also a Wilson's Snipe that let us get very close before it flew. There were several Spotted Sandpipers and a Forster's Tern. We heard a Marsh Wren and saw a Dickcissel.
We walked some of the trail at Anderson Island but the mosquitos were thick and thirsty. We didn't stay too long.
It was a very nice morning to bird with friends. The Ruby-throated Hummingbird, Barn Owl and Say's Phoebe were new Valley County birds for Bill. The hummingbird and owl were new county birds for me. I don't have all of my historic lists entered into ebird but the Barn Owl is number 400 on my North America life list.
I hope to see you next weekend in Kearney at the Nebraska Ornithologists' Union meeting/birding event.
Date: 9/7/26 12:11 pm From: John W. Hall via groups.io <jwhall2...> Subject: [NEBirds] Flycatcher banana continues
Nebirders,Over 600,000 birds were supposedly migrating last night and either a local or migrant Great-crested Flycatcher stopped by to feast on Mimosa webworms today. Rachel was able to get some shots of it, so I am sharing one with you! John & Rachel Hall Omaha NE 68137
Date: 9/6/26 1:59 pm From: John W. Hall via groups.io <jwhall2...> Subject: [NEBirds] Fourth Empidonax this fall
Nebirders,Today after a night of 527,000,000 birds in migration, I got my fourth Empidonax Flycather of fall migration. A definite record, but extraordinary conditions may warrant just that. My Yellow Locust tree is heavily infected with Mimosa web worms, and that is predom what I see birds eating. I had a House Wren scurrying about on the deck last night eating webworms. Today, House Sparrow, 8 or so, plus a Down Woodpecker were all seen doing the same. I also had a Ruby-throated Humminbird sipping from the Salvia. John HallOmaha, NE 68137
Date: 9/5/26 2:38 pm From: Kianna Burtle via groups.io <kiannaburtle...> Subject: [NEBirds] Chadron State Park Week 1 Banding Recap (8/28-9/5)
Howdy NEBirders!
I’m Kianna, this seasons bird bander at Chadron State Park! While the wind and heat were not on our side, this first week (8/28-9/5) has already brought in some migrants along with plenty of residents! Here are this weeks totals:
Brown Thrasher - 1
Northern House Wren - 5
American Robin - 3
Least Flycatcher - 2
Western Wood-Pewee - 3
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher - 3
Wilson’s Warbler - 2
Black-capped Chickadee - 1
Cassin’s Vireo - 4
Hammond’s Flycatcher - 2
Western Tanager - 2
Chipping Sparrow - 2
Red-breasted Nuthatch - 1
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Audubon’s) - 1
Recaptures
Red-breasted Nuthatch - 1 (Banded last year at this station)
Northern House Wren - 1
Brown Thrasher - 1
Hammond’s Flycatcher - 1
The station will be open next week Tuesday-Saturday (weather permitting) and is located at the Sawmill Shelter. With the temps looking slightly cooler, I'm excited to see what comes of it! Come on out and see some birds with me!
Kianna Burtle
Bander, Chadron State Park
Bird Conservancy of the Rockies
Date: 9/4/26 3:56 pm From: cronakelsey via groups.io <cronakelsey...> Subject: [NEBirds] Bird Conservancy of the Rockies Banding Report - Wildcat Hills Station 8/29/2026 - 9/4/2026
Hello folks! I’m Kelsey, the fall '26 bander at the Wildcat Hills bird banding station run by Bird Conservancy of the Rockies. This first week of banding has been busy - many birds were active during cooler mornings, but numbers have decreased slightly with rising temperatures. We’ve caught some fun birds this week and are excited to share with you!
**
**
Red Crossbill: 57 - I have enjoyed all the plumage variations on these birds!
Spotted Towhee: 36
House Finch: 18
Red Breasted Nuthatch: 11
Pygmy Nuthatch: 10
American Goldfinch: 8
Yellow-breasted Chat: 4
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher: 4
Wilson’s Warbler: 4
Orange-crowned Warbler: 3
Pine Siskin: 3
Western Tanager: 3
Mourning Dove: 2
Northern House Wren: 2
Black-capped Chickadee: 2
Chipping Sparrow: 1
Townsend’s Warbler: 1
Western Warbling Vireo: 1
Dusky Flycatcher: 1
Evening Grosbeak: 1 - a first for the station!
Cassin’s Finch: 1
**
**
Total: 173
**
**
While we did not catch this bird, a Clark’s Nutcracker was seen at the station on 9/3. Send us good luck to catch this bird! We also caught a young Black-chinned Hummingbird, but we did not band it. Another highlight was a male Spotted Towhee with an old band - turns out he was banded in 2020 as an adult. He’s at least seven years old!
**
**
This station is open from Tuesday-Saturday until October 10th. For the upcoming week of 9/8/2026 - 9/12/2026, nets will open at 6:15am and will close at 12:15pm, weather permitting. Come by and see some birds!
