Ptitsy Sankt-Peterburga. Fauna, razmeshchenie, okhrana [Birds of St.-Petersburg. Fauna, distribution, conservation]

Report on

The Common Swift in St. Petersburg

Khrabryi,V.M. 1991. Ptitsy Sankt-Peterburga. Fauna, razmeshchenie, okhrana [Birds of St.-Petersburg. Fauna, distribution, conservation] (Russian). Proceedings of Zoological Institute of Russian Academy of Sciences, vol. 236, edited by V.A.Paevskiy. 276 p.

(APUSlist No. 3050)

by JEVGENI SHERGALIN

Common Swift (p. 97)

Common breeding migratory bird. In Leningrad breeds everywhere, excluding the surroundings of the Lakhta Bay and some large unoccupied territories inside the city block. In parks it usually breeds in tree holes, under the roofs of buildings or in artificial nest boxes. In old city parks we recorded Swifts breeding in holes in trees.

In spring the first Swifts appear in the second half of May. We recorded arrival 12.05.1978, 16.05.1979, 26.05.1980, 14.05.1981, 19.05.1982, 18.05.1983, 22.05.1985, 16.05.1986, 19.05.1987.

Dates of the departure of Swifts are in the second half of August. The last birds in the city were observed 31.08.1977, 26.08.1978, 14.09.1979, 10.09.1980, 6.09.1980, 6.09.1981, 16.09.1982, 18.09.1983, 10.09.1984, 11.09.1989.