Overhead

  

Stopping to pick up sandwiches in northern Sonoma County today and noticed a handful of Vaux's Swifts (Chaetura vauxi) flying overhead.  Photo for the record on 15 June 2025.

Flyby

 

Whew, swifts are hard to photograph!  I haven't seen swifts that often on Bodega Head, so here's a Vaux's Swift (Chaetura vauxi) photo for the record.  Observed this morning on 12 August 2019. 

P.S.  Here are a few more photos from several years ago — "Small but swift" on 14 September 2015.

 

Aeronautes

A few years ago, I wrote about White-throated Swifts (Aeronautes saxatilis) at AT&T Park in San Francisco — review the "Sky Sailors" post from 1 July 2012.  

We were at the park last night and I was thrilled to see several swifts actively feeding.  In 2012, I only managed blurry silhouettes, but this year I ended up with one shot showing the white throat and belly (they remind me of Orcas!).  

 

White-throated Swifts are so fast that it's hard to photograph them, especially with dim light, and between innings!  Some day I hope to have a chance in easier conditions. 

Small but swift

 

Just a quick post to document Vaux's Swift (Chaetura vauxi) at Bodega Head on 8 September 2015.  They're considered an uncommon migrant here.  This is the first time I've managed to photograph them.

This is a small swift — the smallest in North America — at about ~11 cm (~4.5 inches) long.  

Above, and below, note the paler throat and upper breast:

 

The next picture is a silhouette, but you can see the spines on the tips of the tail feathers — used for support when perching vertically.

 

Now I can only hope to photograph a Black Swift (Cypseloides niger) on Bodega Head!  (There are only two records for Black Swift on Bodega Head, from 1977 and 1980.)

Sky sailors

A friend of mine kept a list of "ballpark birds" and other species he observed at sporting venues.  I can't help thinking that he would have been impressed with White-throated Swift (Aeronautes saxatilis).

 

These aren't very good photos, but it seemed worth posting them since White-throated Swifts are so awe-inspiring.  And perhaps it will encourage other people to keep an eye out for them if attending a SF Giants game at AT&T Park.  Photos were taken there on 29 June 2012.  (Has anyone seen them at the Oakland Coliseum or Candlestick Park?)

 

Note the long wings and relatively long tail.  The tail has a shallow notch (see next photo).  Unfortunately, their striking black-and-white plumage is not visible in these images.

 

The genus, Aeronautes, means "sky sailor."  It describes how they take advantage of air currents and updrafts, as well as their amazing speed and agility in flight.  These birds were foraging within and just above the upper deck of the park.  But I read that White-throated Swifts were once observed at an air mass convergence zone at 2,500 meters (or 8,202 feet, or 1.5 miles!).

 

Here are a few other shots taken from the ferry on the way to the park (below).  Both are looking west — one with the Golden Gate Bridge and fog in the background, the other with a silhouette of Alcatraz Island.

 

 

P.S.  I've also seen some nice dragonflies at AT&T Park — probably the best so far is a Black Saddlebags (Tramea lacerata).