Birds of the Lower Ohio River Valley in West Virginia

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APODIDAE

Chimney Swift  Chaetura pelagica

WINTER:  NO RECORDS.

SUMMER:  Very Common to Abundant Resident.

MIGRATION:

 Spring:  Very Common to Abundant Migrant arriving from early April to late April.  Early dates, 28 March 1960 (WA); 02 April 1975 (HS); 05 April 1961 (WA) and 1970 and 1976 (HS).  Edeburn et al. (1960) cites an extremely early date of 13 March 1943.

 Fall:  Abundant to Very Abundant Migrant from late August to mid-October.  Late dates, one on 22 October and 2 on 26 October 1999 (HS); 16 October 1973, 1978, 1979 and 1983 (HS).  See Remarks section.

REMARKS:

Breeding Bird Survey (Bullard 2003): Cabwaylingo State Forest, Wayne Co., WV (2002): 135 Stops (7 surveys), 64 Mile. Number of Stops Recorded: 4. Total Birds: 5.

Breeding Bird Survey (Koch and Hurley 1974): Beech Fork Lake, Wayne County, WV (29 May 1969): 50 Stops, 25 Mile. Number of Stops Recorded: 5. Total Birds: 14.

Breeding Bird Survey (Koch 1974): McClintic WMA, Mason Co., WV (29 May 1971): 50 Stops, 12.25 Mile. Number of Stops Recorded: 3. Total Birds: 6.

Banding Data:  An estimated 5000 birds, which had become trapped in a church at Huntington, WV, were removed on 12, 13, and 20 October 1987.  While most were dead, 277 of 1738 birds released on 12 and 13 October 1987 were banded (Wilson 1990).