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In Canada, the breeding range of the Black Swift is restricted to southern British Columbia and southwestern Alberta. Elsewhere, isolated populations occur in the western United States, Mexico and the Caribbean. Although the reliability of Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) data for this species is low, it is the only source of data on population change. BBS results suggest a large decrease in population since 1973. In 2015, the Black Swift as assessed as Endangered by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC), based on the species' highly specialised feeding and nesting habits and the suspected population decrease. This species has been identified as a priority for conservation and/or stewardship in one or more Bird Conservation Region Strategies in Canada.
Causes of the population decline for this species are not well known (Lowther et al. 2002). The United States State of the Birds 2010 Report on Climate Change has listed Black Swift as highly vulnerable to climate change, and more specifically, it is vulnerable to the drying of ephemeral waterfalls required for breeding (Marks and Casey 2005). The Black Swift is one of several species of aerial-foraging insectivores showing widespread declines in Canada. Changes in aerial insect populations have been suggested as one possible common factor as well as landscape changes and the effects of climate change (Blancher et al. 2009, Nebel et al. 2010). Knowledge of migration routes and wintering locations is incomplete.
Environment and Climate Change Canada and partners have developed Bird Conservation Region Strategies in each of Canada’s Bird Conservation Regions (BCRs). In these strategies, selected species are identified as priorities for one or more of the following reasons:
Select any of the sub-regions below to view the BCR strategy for additional details.