The Jonestown Cistern is a concrete structure that measures ~ 10' in diameter and stands ~ 16' tall.  It no longer holds water, but it can hold an impressive number of Chimney swifts during spring and fall migration.  More than 2000 swifts have been counted in some years.

The Jonestown Cistern at Dusk

This photo is from American Birds 36:5 (Spring migration report for 1982).  It is a small segment of a column of thousands of Chimney Swifts clustered
on the lee side of a large tree in Sarita, Kenedy County, Texas, on 27 March, 1982.  Conditions that day were much as they were March 27--29, 2001; unseasonable cold and rainy conditions with strong north winds.

Thanks to John Arvin for providing  the photo from his archives.

This is one of 2 new Chimney Swift Towers at the Hornsby Bend Wastewater Treatment Plant near Austin, Texas.  With funding from the Travis Audubon Society and cooperation from the Center for Environmental Education and the City of Austin we combined Chimney Swift housing with public education.

The nest chambers were based on our time-tested 12' towers built of Textured 1-11 siding.  Both included a space between the inner wall and outer sheathing.  In one tower, a 3/4" airspace was left empty.  In the other tower, the space was filled with foil-backed rigid foam insulation board. 

Both towers were fitted with 4' x 4' kiosk panels on all sides.  The kiosk panels and the lower half of the towers are sheltered by a roof.  The roof and panels provide additional protection from the relentless Central Texas sun.  In addition, the panels provide an ideal place to mount educational visual displays.

"The Castle" is a cinder-block Chimney Swift tower in Chaetura Canyon on the Mansfield Dam Bird Banding Station in Central Texas.  It was built in the summer of 1996 and has had  a Chimney Swift nest and roost every year since 1997.  These photos were taken on June 4, 2001.