On June 29, 2024, 12 young birders, parents, and supporters met at Bickett-Rate Memorial Preserve in Cedar County to visit and learn about the historic Althea Sherman Chimney Swift tower. Currently maintained by the Cedar County Historical Society (CCHS), this tower is the original structure designed, built, and used by amateur Iowa ornithologist Althea Sherman to observe the nesting behavior of Chimney Swifts at her home in northeastern Iowa in the mid-1900’s. Ms. Sherman’s detailed observations of the many Chimney Swift nests in her tower contributed immensely to the understanding of swift nesting behavior and today are still some of the only observations of this largely unseen portion of a swift’s life.
On this day, thanks to the CCHS and Ms. Sherman’s ingenuity, we had the unique opportunity to see a Chimney Swift nest! We were led into the tower by CCHS Treasurer Mike Boyle, who told us all about how Ms. Sherman used the tower to observe swift nests. He explained that she would often stay in the tower day and night to document when and how the adults would enter the tower to feed the young. The interior of the tower was fascinating! It consisted of a narrow staircase that wound around a 12-foot deep interior chimney, along which were several holes and windows providing a complete view of the chimney. At the top of the staircase was a door that could be opened for viewing and entering the chimney (if needed). Each participant was able to see the nest through this door, which was made of small sticks attached to the wooden wall of the chimney with the extra-sticky saliva produced by Chimney Swifts specifically for nest building. One young birder described the saliva as “honey-like”, which is very accurate! The nest contained 6 mostly featherless young, who made a very raspy, dinosaur-like call at any noise or movement. What an amazing experience it was to see a Chimney Swift nest up close!
After viewing the swift nest, we toured the farm with Mike, learning more about its history and the many species of birds, in addition to the Chimney Swifts, that call the farm home. We were endlessly entertained by the many Purple Martins zipping through the air with the Chimney Swifts, presumably capturing insects unseen to our eyes. The Purple Martins were happy to take up residence in the colony of nest boxes on the farm, and it was amusing to see young martins peaking their heads through the entrance holes of the nest boxes. Also on the farm were several Eastern Bluebird nest boxes, and we were treated with great views of an Eastern Bluebird near one of the boxes. It was the perfect morning for a leisurely hike with the birds!
Many thanks to Mike Boyle for teaching us about the history of the swift tower and the farm and to the Cedar County Historical Society for hosting us! You can view photos from our morning here and a complete species list here.
