Ontario SwiftWatch

05/14/2026

On May 26th 2026, Birds Canada staff will join Canadian Nuclear Laboratories for a Swift Night Out at the Nuclear Power Demonstration (NPD) site in Rolphton, Ontario!

As dusk falls, we’ll gather near Ontario's largest known roosting site to (hopefully!) watch hundreds of swifts swirl and dive into a decommissioned ventilation stack for the night.

Advanced registration is required to attend the event & closes on May 20th, 2026: https://www.cnl.ca/event/chimney-swift-count-night-at-npd/

You're invited to the 2026 Chimney Swift Count Night at NPD.

Join CNL's staff and Birds Canada at the NPD site for the annual Chimney Swift count night.

Registration is now open at https://www.cnl.ca/event/chimney-swift-count-night-at-npd/

03/24/2026

Happening soon‼️! Join us at 7pm EST for an Ontario SwiftWatch webinar! Meet Birds Canada staff, guest speaker Dr. Yolanda Morbey, hear about survey efforts and occupancy updates, and take part in a live Q&A discussion.

Register here: 71d05353-e8ef-4121-b039-b61cc65b3af0@752a83ff-6e03-459a-8b8f-b0924cf93ac4" rel="ugc" target="_blank">https://events.teams.microsoft.com/event/71d05353-e8ef-4121-b039-b61cc65b3af0@752a83ff-6e03-459a-8b8f-b0924cf93ac4

03/04/2026

Join us on Tuesday, March 24, 2026, at 7:00 p.m. EST for a special webinar highlighting the past three years of Ontario SwiftWatch and the program's impact on Chimney Swift conservation.

Spend the evening with Birds Canada staff Natasha Barlow and Gabriel Evans-Cook as they share details from recent survey efforts, occupancy trends, and what's next for Chimney Swift conservation at Birds Canada.

We’re also pleased to welcome guest speaker Professor Yolanda Morbey from Western University, who will discuss how the Chimney Swift data collected by Nature London is contributing to ongoing research.

We’ll wrap up with time for a Q&A session. We'd love to hear from you!

Register here:
71d05353-e8ef-4121-b039-b61cc65b3af0@752a83ff-6e03-459a-8b8f-b0924cf93ac4" rel="ugc" target="_blank">https://events.teams.microsoft.com/event/71d05353-e8ef-4121-b039-b61cc65b3af0@752a83ff-6e03-459a-8b8f-b0924cf93ac4

12/06/2025

'Twas the last few weeks before the holidays, when all through the home,
not an employee was stirring, not even a SwiftWatch Coordinator writing a poem;
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,
in hopes that swifts would soon be there (in a few more months)…’

As we move towards the end of the year,
we wanted to wish you a season filled with good cheer!

P.S. Please submit all outstanding SwiftWatch surveys by the end of the year,
so our dataset will be all cleaned and all clear!

https://naturecounts.ca/nc/ai/main.jsp

12/05/2025

Biggest thank you to all of the SwiftWatchers and other volunteers who dedicate so much time and effort to ensuring that we monitor Chimney Swifts in Ontario and beyond!

09/19/2025

Special thanks to Pollinator Roadsides (Waterloo Region) and UWindsor Campus Community Garden for planting two native plant gardens this September to support aerial insectivores like Chimney Swifts! Plants were provided in part by Prairie Song Nursery and Restoration and Native Plant Source, and were purchased by funds granted by the TD Friends of the Environment Foundation. Thanks to all the volunteers and students who assisted with the plantings🌻🪻.

09/02/2025

Any plans for this weekend? How about joining Birds Canada and Waterloo Region Nature (Pollinator Roadsides) in a native garden planting on Saturday Sep 6, anytime between 9:30am-3pm? Help birds, bees, butterflies, and more, in Kitchener! Register: https://waterlooregionnature.ca/event/pollinator-roadsides-2025-09/

08/20/2025

Have you signed up to help restore habitat for birds, insects, and other wildlife? Join an exciting event run by Waterloo Region Nature (Pollinator Roadsides), supported by Birds Canada, on Sep 6 anytime between 9:30am-3pm in Kitchener, for a native garden planting🌱🌸.

Learn more and register here: https://waterlooregionnature.ca/event/pollinator-roadsides-2025-09/

08/06/2025

Ready to get your hands dirty in the name of conservation🌱🌻? Join Waterloo Region Nature (Pollinator Roadsides) and Birds Canada for a native garden planting to restore habitat for birds, bees, butterflies, and more! Want to help aerial insectivores like Chimney Swifts? Join Sep 6 anytime between 9:30am-3pm to help increase insect abundance and diversity for them to use as food! Learn more and register for this event in Kitchener by visiting: https://waterlooregionnature.ca/event/pollinator-roadsides-2025-09/

07/25/2025

The Chimney Swift nesting season is winding down but we still have a week or two to fill in some important habitat knowledge gaps before swifts begin moving to their Fall Roost sites. If you have time, please consider selecting a site from the interactive Google Map linked below. Each of these locations only has one date with historical Chimney Swift entries, so every new observation makes a big difference in protecting these threatened birds' remaining habitat!

Thank you to those of you who have already surveyed some of these high priority chimneys!

https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=1W2ln0TPT7LLZ4EUUMs1g2V-pbB6_lLY&usp=sharing