Bank Swallows are a species at risk and have been facing one of the largest population declines for any species in Canada – an estimated 93-98% of the Canadian population has been lost in the last 40 years. The Upper Columbia Swallow Habitat Enhancement Project (UCSHEP) is a multi-faceted, multi-year swallow conservation project that takes place in the Columbia Valley (Canal Flats to Kinbasket Reservoir), working to help halt and reverse population declines for Bank and Barn Swallows (both at-risk species).
The UCSHEP participated in a Canada-wide initiative led by Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC), with the help of project partners from many organizations, that used the Motus Wildlife Tracking System to describe migration routes and timing for Bank Swallows from breeding sites across Canada and in Alaska. The UCSHEP located two appropriate tagging sites, and with the help of ECCC and other partners (BC Parks, The Nature Trust of BC, Shuswap Band) six Motus stations were installed at strategic locations. Tagging of 100 Bank Swallows took place in the Invermere area in 2022 and 2023. There were 890 Motus tags deployed across Canada and in Alaska, and literally millions of detections that came from Motus stations in North, Central and South America. ECCC enlisted a Master’s student (Sarah Endenburg) from Carleton University (Ottawa, Ontario) who led the charge on the Motus data analysis for Bank Swallows. “Understanding Bank Swallow migration ecology is an important first step for their conservation because it provides the necessary foundation to understand when and where drivers of population decline are acting, which can help determine the most appropriate conservation actions,” says Endenburg. 
“In regards to the UCSHEP, one of Sarah’s most interesting findings is that one of our BC birds ended up in Costa Rica and it is possible that it overwintered there,” says UCSHEP biologist Rachel Darvill. “ It is important to know where these birds go post breeding so that we can look at what stressors may be impacting Bank Swallows outside of breeding areas.”
Endenburg also discovered that there appear to be three different migratory routes for the Bank Swallows that were tagged across Canada. “Our Invermere birds headed directly south post breeding, and possibly followed the Rocky Mountains southward.” In contrast, Endenburg explains that “swallows from northern British Columbia, the Yukon, Alaska and Saskatchewan headed east into the Canadian prairies and then down into central USA”. Swallows from breeding sites in Québec and the Maritimes stayed close to the Atlantic coast of North America as they migrated southwards.
As for likely wintering areas, the tags deployed had a limited battery life to reduce their weight, and since there are few Motus stations in Central and South America, they cannot be relied upon for determining the end points for migration routes. However, feathers were also removed during the banding/tagging process. Feather stable isotopes will be used to determine likely winter locations for each individual. Bank Swallows undergo most of their molt during the winter; therefore the isotopic signature in feathers collected on the breeding grounds the following spring can be used to estimate likely winter locations. Migratory connectivity profiles are being used by researchers to evaluate temporal and spatial connectivity from the migration route (radio-telemetry) and probable winter location (stable isotope) findings. Results will inform whether connectivity throughout the year could explain differential population trends.
Endenburg’s thesis research with her findings are now available. For more information on this and other aspects of the UCSHEP, visit the website or email program biologist racheldarvill@gmail.com. This project was developed and is managed by Goldeneye Ecological Services, and is administered by Wildsight Golden. Both organizations gratefully acknowledge the financial support of the Columbia Basin Trust and Fish & Wildlife Compensation Program for their contributions to the Upper Columbia Swallow Habitat Enhancement Project.
Photo credit to Rachel Darvill.