"The Coolest Bird" Revisited- Searching for Black Swifts in NM

Jemez Falls, one of only about 4 sites with confirmed breeding Black Swifts (Cypseloides niger) in NM
Sandoval County, NM

Aug. 9, 2017

As someone who is both a lister, and vastly interested in the plethora of forms the natural world has to offer, I have naturally been drawn to the Black Swift (Cypseloides niger). To start, swifts (Family Apodidae) are a uniquely adapted group that spend the majority of their lives in the air. In fact, "Apodidea" actually means "no feet" referring to both this groups' aerial life styles, and their inconspicuous feet (which they do have).

Black Swifts in particular remain fairly unknown. Groundbreaking field study of the species in the Rocky Mountains by Owen A. Knorr in the 1950's and '60s helped pave the way for better understanding their breeding requirements, but much remains unknown about this species migration and wintering movements. Though there is also a population of Black Swifts that breed along the sea cliffs of the Pacific Northwest, those in Colorado and the Rockies adhere to the same habitat requirements as those in northern New Mexico. This means waterfalls, something that is in decidedly short supply in the Land of Enchantment, and only adds to the mystic of this highly aerial species.

Breeding range of middle Rocky Mountain Black Swifts 

(eBird)

There are about 3 known breeding sites of Black Swift in New Mexico. These include Jemez Falls (most accessible), Nambe Falls, and Rio Quemado Falls. They are also likely breeding at the falls along the Rio Brazos which is funneled through an impressive series of sheer cliffs but is privately owned, making exploration difficult. There are sites that seem suitable in the Gila Wilderness in the southwestern portion of the state, but there has yet to be a confirmed Black Swift nest found here.

Knorr's 5 Ingredients for the Perfect Black Swift Nesting Sites

1. Water- Present at all nest colonies and always perennial. Volume can vary from a torrent to a trickle, but more water seems to be preferred. "A curtain of falling water is no barrier to these birds which will fly through it to reach suitable nesting crannies." (Knorr 1961)

2. High Relief-Most sites feature falls that have a high relief from the surrounding area.

3. Inaccessibility- Possibly the reason these birds developed this affinity for falls in the first place, nesting well above the ground near a waterfall offers a great degree of protection from potential predators.

4. Darkness- Most sites are placed such that they do not receive direct sunlight. Some nests have been located that do receive some light, but seldom is it for more than a few hours a day. "The sun rarely shines on the nest of a Black Swift." (Knorr 1961)

5. Unobstructed Flyways- Aside for water, the area immediately in front of the falls should not be hemmed in with trees, cliffs, etc... This allows the birds to make an easy exit and return to the nest at dawn and dusk.

Long story short, for those interested in pursuing a New Mexico year (or all-time) list, a pre-dawn visit to Jemez Falls in the Santa Fe National Forest has become a tradition. On August 9th I made the early drive from my home in Santa Fe through Los Alamos and arrived at the Falls parking area at 5:30am (after a brief stop to get an audio record several calling Common Nighthawks (Chordeiles minor). From here the enterprising Black Swift searcher has two options. One can hike less than half an hour and watch the birds depart their cavernous roost via the falls overlook (suggested), or one can pick their way down to the river and stand at the cave entrance near the foot of the falls for a more intimate fly-by encounter. I have traditionally chosen the latter option and continued to do so on this visit. There are various social trails that weave their way downstream from the overlook, and about a half mile downstream one can carefully pick their way down the super steep canyon to the riverside, at which point one needs to hike back upstream to the base of the falls. Doing this in the predawn light can be quite tricky, and I don't recommend it to any but the most adventurous.

Several large boulders make the final scramble into the cave difficult.

Jemez Falls, Sandoval County, NM

Aug. 9, 2017

Once at the foot of the cave, I usually wait to count the swifts as they depart and then enter the airy cavern space to count any juveniles that may still be in the nest. On this visit I counted 11 individuals departing and no juveniles left behind, so I would guess there were at least 3 or 4 pairs present this year. 

Black Swift on nest

Jul. 4, 2015

Jemez Falls, Sandoval County, NM

Being the lister and inherent explorer I am, I wasn't entirely satisfied with simply seeing the same swifts at the same location as everyone else (though I am the only birder who reported any Black Swifts in NM this year on eBird). So, I decided to do some reconnaissance of the other known Black Swift site on public land, and headed towards Truchas to check out Rio Quemado Falls. This site was discovered by Jason Beason in 2003 while surveying for breeding Black Swifts in Colorado and New Mexico. More recently, Beason and collaborators successfully deployed several geolocators on Black Swifts from Colorado to try and find their previously unknown wintering grounds. They discovered that the birds were wintering in Southeastern Brazil. 

Historically there has been some weariness about leaving cars in this area due to break ins. I had no trouble on this day, and after speaking with another hiker who has frequented this particular trail for the past 15 years, he has had no problems either. The trailhead (153 Rio Quemado Trail) lies at the end of NF Rd 667 which is marked as "End of Road for Truchas Mountains" on Google Maps. The road definitely requires higher clearance (a RAV4 made it, my Prius did not). After giving up on driving the road, I had parked and began hiking up the road (apparently 6 miles shy of the trailhead) before serendipitously running into a friendly photographer/hiker named Dave who had been exploring this area for years and offered me a ride. He enthusiastically agreed to help me in my search for swifts and generously shared info on trail conditions. 

Trail 153 Rio Quemado (top) Rio Quemado Falls (bottom)

Rio Arriba County, NM

We picked our way up the ~3.5 mile trail towards the falls. There were a number of windfalls littering the path, but many had been cut, so it wasn't too difficult. It was however, heavily braided in places by social trails, so finding the way wasn't always a piece of cake. Getting lost is pretty hard though, the trail simply follows the river with the river essentially always to the south (right side on the way to the falls, left side on the way back).
Once at the falls, it became quite difficult to hear over the volume of water cascading down the 100+ foot drop.
I perused the falls, looking for secluded overhangs that might be attractive to a nesting Black Swift. The fact that all of the swifts at Jemez Falls had apparently already fledged (at least 2 of the departing birds appeared to be Hatch Years, with whitish spots on the underparts), I didn't expect any of the birds here to still be in the nest, making the chances of detection slim. Nevertheless, I searched and found a prominent overhang that produced a sizeable cave-like space on the north (left) side of the falls. Upon closer inspection it appeared to have several perfect ledges for a Black Swift to build a nest.

While the falls itself had some suitable ledges, this small cavern to the left of the falls also had some structure reminiscent of the Jemez Falls cave.

Rio Quemado Falls, Rio Arriba County, NM

Aug. 9, 2017 

Possible Black Swift nest cup within a cleft of the aforementioned mini-cave. A mossy bowl with a few stones. There wasn't any direct evidence of any fecal sacs, but there was an odd whitish fungus growing.

Rio Quemado Falls, Rio Arriba County, NM

Aug. 9, 2017

So, while it wasn't as conclusive an expedition as I'd hoped, I managed to gather some good intel for my own planning next year. It definitely looks like a great site and it wouldn't surprise me at all if there were Black Swifts breeding here. Detecting nesting swifts at this site would require either camping and seeing the birds come to roost at dusk or depart the nest from dawn, or coming in early July when young may still be in the nest. Seeing as I probably won't be in New Mexico next July I'll probably try the camping option. Given the prevalence of such species as American Three-toed Woodpecker (Picoides dorsalis), Golden-crowned Kinglet (Regulus satrapa), and Gray Jay (Perisoreus canadensis) at this site, as well as several mesic meadows, it looks like suitable habitat for Boreal Owl (Aegolius funereus).
While I didn't see any Black Swifts in Rio Arriba county, I managed my first ever photos of a very docile Dusky Grouse (Dendragapus obscurus) plus spending some time basking in the grandeur of the Truchas Peaks made it worth the effort.

Dusky Grouse (Dendragapus obscurus) 

Rio Quemado Falls, Rio Arriba County, NM

For those interested, Knorr's informative paper on Black Swift breeding ecology can be found here:

The Geographical and Ecological Distribution of the Black Swift in Colorado

Owen A. Knorr

Wilson Bulletin Apr-Jun 1961 pgs. 155-170

Knorr (1961) SORA