Buy a Brick for Swifts

You can still support the Swifts!  We are continuing the “Buy-a-Brick” campaign through the end of 2018.  Swifts have raised young in 3 of the last 4 years that our chimney has been available.  We will continue to conduct audio-lure sessions in September to attract roosting swifts into the chimney.  We had some success in 2017. Your donation will support our on-going attracting, monitoring and educational efforts at the Prairie Ridge Chimney Swift Tower.  Please lend a helping hand by following the directions below:

Click on the form below.

Print the inscription to be engraved on the brick

Up to 20 characters or spaces/line

 

A $50 contribution for one line

A $75 contribution for two lines

A $100 contribution for three lines

If you prefer, you can email the inscription information to jgerwin@wakeaudubon.org.  Please use “CHSW Brick donation” in the subject of your email.

How to pay: You can either

  1. Send a check make out to Wake Audubon. Mail it to P.O. Box 12452, Raleigh, NC, 27605
  2. 0r click here to use PayPal: Please put “for CHSW brick” in the PayPal memo line.
Your Name*
Your Email*
Your Address*
Your City*
Your State*
Your Zip*
Honoree's Name
Honoree's Address
Honoree's City
Honoree's State
Honoree's Zip
Contribution Amount*
Message on Brick*
Message to Honoree

 

Historically, Chimney Swifts nested in hollow snags across eastern North America but quickly took to residential chimneys as a replacement, from whence their common name is derived. The birds are actually quite nice to have around for homeowners as they feed on thousands of small and annoying flying insects per day. Unfortunately, chimney caps and screens have become more prevalent as some homeowners either don’t want swifts nesting on their property or don’t understand that caps can have an effect on locally nesting swifts.

Wake Audubon partnered with the NC Museum of Natural Sciences to raise the funds to install a permanent Chimney Swift Roost Tower at the Museum’s Prairie Ridge facility. This Roost Tower provides researchers with the opportunity to conduct research on roosting, and will also provide a viewing area for the public to enjoy this annual spectacle.

We continue to collect donations through our Buy a Brick for Swifts campaign. “Buy a Brick” donations  supported the construction of the tower and viewing patio, and will support swift research, and provide viewing opportunities of both nesting and roosting swifts. The tower and viewing area were designed by award-winning architect Frank Harmon. Donated bricks are part of the viewing platform at the Prairie Ridge site.