Touring the towers: ‘A Swift Night Out’ attracts robust crowd

On Friday evening, “A Swift Night Out” attendees check out the tower that was built to house chimney swifts in 2019, which is located by Dunlop Hall on Shepherd University’s campus. Tabitha Johnston
SHEPHERDSTOWN — On Friday night, bird enthusiasts gathered together in front of Shepherd University’s chimney swift tower by Dunlop Hall to participate in the Potomac Valley Audubon Society’s “A Swift Night Out.”
The national event has been commemorated once before by the society, in 2019, when it wanted to introduce local residents to the newly built chimney swift tower. The tower was built through an agreement between PVAS and Shepherd University, to replace the tower in Sara Cree Hall, which had to be torn down due to age-related concerns.
According to PVAS Executive Director Kristin Alexander, about 35 attendees came to “A Swift Night Out” this year. While the 2019 event was solely held at the new chimney swift tower’s location, this year’s event started there, and then continued by visiting three relevant locations in town: the former location of Sara Cree Hall, which is now SU’s Parking Lot C; the other SU tower used by chimney swifts, located behind Knutti Hall; and businesses in downtown Shepherdstown with chimneys that attract a large number of chimney swifts.
“You get four stamps, one from a different Potomac Valley Audubon Society member, at each location. Those who get all four stamps can take our ‘A Swift Night Out’ passport to Rock Hill Creamery for a Swift Sundae!” Alexander said, mentioning the passport made each sundae 50 percent off.
The Swift Sundae, according to Alexander, was vanilla ice cream with chocolate syrup.

Potomac Valley Audubon Society Executive Director Kristin Alexander signs in attendees for “A Swift Night Out” by Shepherd University’s new chimney swift tower on Friday night. Tabitha Johnston
“It is a family-friendly, free event just presenting the importance of chimney swifts and conservation,” Alexander said.
According to PVAS former president and founding member Suzanne Offutt, the presence of chimney swifts is highly desirable, as their diet consists of mosquitoes and other flying insects.
Unfortunately, the number of towers and chimneys available for nesting, during chimney swifts’ 6,000 mile migration to Brazil, are regularly decreasing in number. Sara Cree Hall’s tower once housed more than 1,000 chimney swifts each migration, which helped make Shepherdstown the main resting site for chimney swifts in West Virginia. Chimney swifts tend to rest in the same spots, during each migration, so the building of the new chimney swift tower was essential for the future of the birds, which will hopefully start filling up the new tower in the same way it did the hall’s. Currently, the new chimney swift tower has about 6-10 regular visitors, while the older tower behind Knutti Hall typically houses about 180 chimney swifts.
“We’re still waiting for the chimney swift population to fill the chimney,” Offutt said, mentioning the birds should eventually fill a third of the 28-feet-tall structure. “We knew it would take at least a year before the building would attract swifts.”
Attendees enjoyed listening to Alexander speak about the chimney swifts, as she manned the first passport stop.

“A Swift Night Out” attendees listen to a history of the chimney swifts in Shepherdstown, presented by Potomac Valley Audubon Society founding member Suzanne Offutt on Friday night. Tabitha Johnston
“I’m happy to be here tonight! It was nice to have something to do,” Shepherdstown resident Carolina Ford said. “This is a good opportunity to get out on a summer evening and learn more about the chimney swifts with bird enthusiasts. I’ve seen the chimney swifts before around town — [they] are just fascinating!”
- Potomac Valley Audubon Society Executive Director Kristin Alexander signs in attendees for “A Swift Night Out” by Shepherd University’s new chimney swift tower on Friday night. Tabitha Johnston
- “A Swift Night Out” attendees listen to a history of the chimney swifts in Shepherdstown, presented by Potomac Valley Audubon Society founding member Suzanne Offutt on Friday night. Tabitha Johnston
- The older tower used by chimney swifts on Shepherd University’s campus is located behind Knutti Hall. Tabitha Johnston

The older tower used by chimney swifts on Shepherd University’s campus is located behind Knutti Hall. Tabitha Johnston