Nemesis county bird – Black Swift in Point Loma

[All photographs copyright, Gary Nunn 2014] – I quickly reacted to this large, all dark, swift crossing in front of me just a short time after dawn on 08 Sep 2014 at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery. I was walking into the northeast section of the cemetery at 7:03 a.m. when it appeared flying west to east across the highway. Luckily it veered southward and came right by me and at fairly low elevation. It was clearly larger than any Chaetura species and with much longer saber shaped wingtips and very broad bases to its wings. Finally my nemesis county sighting of a Black Swift Cypseloides niger on migration! It pumped its slightly crooked held wings deeply a few strokes and then glided right by me on locked wings. Amazing! Unfortunately it then went behind a tree and I could not relocate it on the other side! I drove down to the south terminus of the cemetery but no sign anywhere.

This is a large bodied, long-winged swift by my standards and to my eye looks intermediate in appearance, and flight style, between a larger Eurasian type “needletail” and the slimmer profiled genus Apus. Scrutinizing the photographs very closely it is actually possible to see some lighter feathering about the eyes and bill, as well as a few white feathers around the lower belly. The wing feathers look quite worn and tattered which fits with this species pattern of molt on the wintering grounds. The San Diego County Bird Atlas (Unitt 2004) notes that Black Swift is decidedly less common here in the county on fall migration compared to spring migration. From 1997-2001 there was only one report in fall. Outside the atlas period the fall records of this species occur from 23 August to 24 October. Good locations to search include mountain tops in the county as well as Point Loma.

Black Swift – Point Loma, San Diego County, California 08 Sep 2014

Black Swift – Point Loma, San Diego County, California 08 Sep 2014

Black Swift – Point Loma, San Diego County, California 08 Sep 2014

Black Swift – Point Loma, San Diego County, California 08 Sep 2014

Black Swift – Point Loma, San Diego County, California 08 Sep 2014

Black Swift – Point Loma, San Diego County, California 08 Sep 2014

Black Swift – Point Loma, San Diego County, California 08 Sep 2014

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