Birdwatchers gather for Swift Night Out

Bob Sheets, left, Nita Sheets and Jan Anderson watch for chimney swifts to arrive at the old Notre Dame building at dusk Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2013 in Cape Girardeau. Steven Juhlin, assistant manager of the Cape Girardeau County Nature Center, was on hand for the Swift Night Out. He counted 13 birds entering the chimney, a very low number. "We might be between flocks," he said. "There were about 500 chimney swifts counted three or four years ago." The migratory birds cannot perch, but cling to vertical surfaces at nest and roost sites. They spend the winter in South America.