MONROE — In 2008, members from three local Audubon Society chapters successfully prevented the demolition of the Frank Wagner Elementary School brick chimney, a stopover roosting point for thousands of Vaux’s swifts. Because of this, these birds, which resemble swallows but are more closely related to hummingbirds, avoided being forcefully evicted and now sleep soundly inside the chimney every year as part of their bi-annual migration.
To honor this conservation victory and the migration, the Pilchuck Audubon Society is hosting its 16th annual Swifts Night Out event on Saturday, Sept. 7 from 4:30 p.m. to dusk at Frank Wagner Elementary School in Monroe, 639 W. Main St.
“It’s a big community, family-friendly event where people come out, they sit on the lawn … and just kind of enjoy the atmosphere of the evening and wait for the swifts to show up,” said Brian Zinke, director of the Pilchuck Audubon Society.
The event will have activities and games for children, information booths and a food truck.
Larry Schwitters, a retired life sciences teacher and a lead Vaux’s swift expert, will also give a presentation at 6 p.m. in the Wagner Center Auditorium.
“If (people) want to know about the bird, show up for my Powerpoint, and they will know more about that bird than about anybody else on Earth,” Schwitters said. He’s made it his goal to identify all the world’s Vaux’s swift roosts, which are places birds sleep or rest. He has since given more than 100 presentations about the bird, traveling as far as Cambridge, England for an international swift symposium.
“Most of the swifts spend the summer up in British Columbia, Canada, where they breed,” Zinke said. Monroe is the northernmost roost that is large and active, compared to a few smaller ones north of Monroe. “This means that Monroe acts as the indicator to when migration begins as it will often get the first big counts of roosting swifts in the fall. (In the spring it’s the opposite, as the swifts will be flying south to north, making Monroe one of the last stops for migrating swifts),” Zinke said.
Schwitters said the data his team has collected shows the swift’s population has been stable, but he noted that climate change has affected the migration patterns of the birds. Because of this, he said that there is a possibility that by September, the swifts will have already left.
Regardless of where the birds are by the time of the event, Zinke said that he believes it is important to show support for the Vaux’s swift — Monroe’s city bird — and the community.
“Whether or not the birds show up, it’s just a fun event to come out with family and friends and just enjoy the sense of community,” Zinke said.
Zinke said that he enjoys talking to people at community science events like Swifts Night Out because it allows him and his team to get people excited about bird conservation.
