ML583830681
Contributor
Date
Location
- Age
- Not specified
- Sex
- Not specified
Observation details
Large, all dark swift with long pointed wings and a broad chest. Was noticeably widest in the center of the body, not cigar shaped. It had long swept back wings, broadly connected to the body and ending in a sharp point. Wing beats - we both noted that its wing beats were noticeably slower than what we would expect on a Vaux’s or a White-throated. But again, this bird was much too large to be either of those and uniformly dark. Since it was heading south into a very stiff wind, its flight was slowed, and we got some pretty good looks at it. The bird was not too high over the White Mountain Ranch fields, perhaps twice as high as the large elm trees we were next to. With all the extensive thunderstorm activity the past few days, we were primed and prepped, actively on the lookout for Black Swifts. Nonetheless, this is one of only a handful of occasions we have seen Black Swifts in the Eastern Sierra in two decades.
Technical information
- Camera
- Microphone
- Accessories
- Original file size
- 203.04 KB