Chimney swifts are migratory birds found throughout North, South, and Central America. They are small dark gray birds that look like cigars with long, narrow wings. When flying, they feed on insects in mid-air and live in large flocks.
Unable to perch, they cling to vertical surfaces. The bird’s common name comes from one of its favorite nesting places, chimneys. However, chimney swifts become problematic for homeowners when their nests interfere with the use of their chimneys. Critter Control is an expert at chimney swift removal if you suspect you have chimney swifts nesting and breeding in your chimney.
Signs of a Chimney Swift Infestation
Both bats and chimney swifts like to inhabit chimneys, so it can be hard to discern between them. Signs that you have swifts in your chimney include:
- Chimney swift noises are distinct. They are vocal birds, and you’ll be able to hear their chirps and tweets, especially during nesting season.
- Chimney swifts are most active at dawn and dusk. So, if you pay attention during these periods, you’ll be able to see them leaving and entering your chimney.
- If you look up into your chimney, you might be able to see chimney swift nests attached to your chimney wall. You might also see nesting materials, such as twigs and leaves, that have fallen into your fireplace.
- If your infestation is significant, you will see droppings that have fallen inside your fireplace from nesting swifts.
- As droppings accumulate inside your chimney, you might notice a bad odor from the droppings as well as from decaying nesting materials.
- As nests accumulate in your chimney, you’ll notice difficulty starting fires, as those nests will cause a decrease in draft efficiency.
Professional Chimney Swift Control
Chimney swift birds are protected under the Federal Migratory Bird Treaty Act. This means it is a federal offense to harm them, underscoring the importance of calling in professionals like Critter Control. Critter Control has the expertise, experience, and dedication to humane practices to eradicate swifts in your chimney.
Chimney Swift Trapping
When first confronted with a chimney swift problem, many homeowners call a chimney sweep when what is needed is a nuisance wildlife removal company such as Critter Control.
Trapping swifts is both difficult and harmful to these protected birds. Trapping and relocating is too stressful on swifts. To remove swifts from your chimney after nesting season, Critter Control will install a temporary cap on your chimney that will allow them to fly out at dawn to feed but will exclude them from coming back down your chimney. Once all the swifts have been removed, a different, permanent cap is installed to prevent future infestations.
Critter Control uses only humane wildlife control to eliminate chimney swifts or any other nuisance animal.
Chimney Swift Prevention and Exclusion
For chimney swifts, the process is one of discouraging them from entering places you don’t want them while encouraging them to find other adequate roosting places. A bird-proof chimney cap with a mesh screen and a small grid is a very effective way to keep chimney swifts out of your chimney. This is best done in the fall to ensure the swifts have left your chimney to migrate south.
Other prevention methods include repairing and sealing around your chimney to ensure they cannot enter. For best results, schedule annual chimney inspections.
Chimney swifts have been in decline as a species as their roosts have been disappearing. If you are inclined to help these beneficial birds that can eat as many as 12,000 insects per day, think about building a chimney swift tower in your backyard or in a park.
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Chimney swifts are about the same size as a robin. They have a tube-like body that is often compared to a cigar with long, narrow wings that have a span of around 12 inches. They are gray, and their tails are short and square. In flight, their patterns look similar to those of bats as they feed on insects mid-air.
Chimney swifts are native to North and South America. As migratory birds, they breed in North America and Canada and migrate to South America for the winter. In the U.S., it is common to find them in urban and suburban areas, where they nest primarily in chimneys and abandoned buildings. In the winter, their habitat is in the forests with adjacent open land where insects are plentiful.
Chimney swifts come out right after dawn and feed in flocks continuously all day. They then return to communal roosts, where they rest up for the next day.
Chimney swifts take advantage of uncapped or damaged chimneys through which they can easily enter.
Because they live in flocks, the multiple nests within a single chimney can block the flue. This can restrict the airflow necessary for smoke and carbon monoxide to rise out of your home, causing a fire risk. Other issues include chimney swift noises from their chirping and the droppings that can accumulate in your chimney.
Since nesting chimney swifts pose a fire risk, it is important to call an experienced professional wildlife removal company such as Critter Control. Critter Control is well-trained in both the laws of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and humane removal techniques.
Chimney swifts will remain in your chimney throughout their breeding season, which typically lasts from about May through September. Once their offspring fledge, they begin their preparation for migration.
Since chimney swifts are a protected species and cannot be harmed, removal is conducted through the installation of a one-way chimney cap that lets the swifts fly out but not back in.
Several factors determine the cost of removing chimney swifts, including the extent and complexity of the infestation, the amount of cleanup and repair, and whether your locality requires a permit for removal. Critter Control offers free inspections, after which they will provide you with a detailed plan for removal, costs, and their guarantee.