[mou] Chimney Swifts feeding from tree branches

[Alt, Mark]

I went with some friends to see Jefferson Starship at the "Taste of MN"
event, and while walking from the parking lots along the river east of
the Wabasha Bridge, I passed a large tree that appeared dead, with no
leaves on it.  I noticed a Chimney Swift coursing through its branches,
stop quickly on a branch, fluttering its wings, then with a movement of
its head, appearing to tear something off of the branches, and was again
airborne.  There were at least 4 swifts feeding in this manner, which
struck me as odd for I have never seen swifts alight anywhere.  The
birds never actually perched, but balanced themselves with their wings
aflutter like I have seen in many bird's copulatory behavior.  Perhaps
they can't perch?  I did not study it further to determine what they
were feeding on, and I am wondering if this tree was blighted with worms
or caterpillars of some sort, but for 10 minutes I observed this
setting, much to my wife's chagrin, and I observed this behavior 20
times from at least 4 birds, probably more.  It appeared to me that this
was a primary foraging technique for these birds.  My friends rolled
their eyes at my suggestion of this exciting deduction, which I took to
mean it was just as fascinating for them as it was to me.  We ate bad
food, listened to aging rockers with a beautiful sub for Grace Slick,
and watched some people enjoy themselves.  Until dark, I was occupied
with watching for more aberrant swift behavior, to no avail.  If Darwin
had visited Harriet Island rather than the Galapagos, this might have
been his great epiphany. Well, probably not, maybe that secondary smoke
I was in the middle of wasn't tobacco after all.  Party on, birder
dudes!


Mark Alt
Brooklyn Center, MN=20
Hennepin County

"Birds are really cool"