{"id":508778,"date":"2026-04-02T10:41:07","date_gmt":"2026-04-02T10:41:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/508778\/"},"modified":"2026-04-02T10:41:07","modified_gmt":"2026-04-02T10:41:07","slug":"swifts-spark-joy-why-these-beautiful-birds-need-our-help-and-10-ways-to-give-it-environment","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/508778\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Swifts spark joy!\u2019 Why these beautiful birds need our help \u2013 and 10 ways to give it | Environment"},"content":{"rendered":"

Swifts are wheeling, screaming endurance athletes. They don\u2019t touch the earth for nine months of the year and fly about 14,000 miles annually<\/a> \u2013 travelling from sub-Saharan Africa to nest in the UK, then back again. In Britain, they\u2019re the sign that summer is coming or taking its leave. In between, they provide a heart-soaring display of beauty. No wonder they\u2019re beloved.<\/p>\n

\u201cSwifts spark joy,\u201d says Hannah Bourne-Taylor<\/a>, a passionate swift advocate and author of Nature Needs You: The Fight to Save Our Swifts<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cI used to lie on the kitchen table with my head outside the window watching them,\u201d says Edward Mayer, founder of Swift Conservation<\/a>. \u201cThey\u2019re absolutely gorgeous \u2026 Like an aerial shark, in perpetual motion.\u201d<\/p>\n

Swifts can be identified by their long swooping wings and pale throats. Photograph: MikeLane45\/Getty Images\/iStockphotoWhy do they need to be saved?<\/p>\n

Our skies get quieter every summer: from 1995 to 2023, the UK swift population declined by 68%<\/a>. \u201cIt is a pretty consistent decline,\u201d says the RSPB\u2019s migratory birds programme manager, Dr Guy Anderson, \u201cand it\u2019s pretty consistent wherever you look in the UK.\u201d<\/p>\n

The reasons are murky, but it\u2019s likely that the loss of nesting sites is part of the picture. \u201cIn the past 100 years or so,\u201d says Anderson, \u201cwe\u2019ve started to change the way that we manage, build and renovate our structures, and that\u2019s been gradually making it harder for swifts to find the little holes and nooks and access points into buildings that they need.\u201d<\/p>\n

But it\u2019s not the only factor: \u201cThe other six-legged elephant in the room is insects,\u201d he says. Most conservationists believe insect populations have declined and recent research<\/a> on swifts suggests \u201cperiods of the worst bad weather do affect their breeding success\u201d. Increased climate volatility means unseasonal weather events will probably become more frequent.<\/p>\n

How can you help?<\/p>\n

Become a nest detective
\u201cSwift-watching is really fundamental to their survival,\u201d Bourne-Taylor says. Knowing where swift colonies nest helps conservation groups focus their efforts. You can help by using the RSPB Swift Mapper app and website<\/a>. \u201cIt\u2019s an online citizen data recording tool, which allows anyone to plot sightings of nesting swifts,\u201d says Anderson. The database now has more than 100,000 sightings \u2013 and the more that people contribute, the more complete and valuable the records become. Users look for spots that swifts are flying in and out of, or where they are gathering for their famed \u201cscreaming parties\u201d \u2013 \u201cwhen they\u2019re doing their Red Arrow displays in big, whooping, boisterous groups\u201d, as Bourne-Taylor puts it.<\/p>\n

Be a swift brick champion
A swift brick<\/a> is a small structure that can be fitted into cavities in building walls, providing a forever nest. \u201cI\u2019m obsessed with swift bricks,\u201d says Bourne-Taylor. Her Feather Speech campaign<\/a> lobbies for mandatory swift bricks in new builds. \u201cIt\u2019s arguably the simplest nature recovery action ever; they\u2019re so easy to install if you\u2019re making an extension or building a house.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s the ideal time to get a swift brick, or two or three,\u201d says Mayer, who says they can also be installed during alterations or repairs requiring scaffolding: \u201cPop out a couple of bricks and stick in a swift brick.\u201d Swift Conservation<\/a> trains planners, builders and architects on accommodating swifts in development, but it can also provide individual advice. If you can\u2019t install your own brick, advocate for them locally: in addition to her national campaigning, Bourne-Taylor became a parish councillor, and her parish now asks new builds or extensions to include one swift brick.<\/p>\n

Get boxing
Swift boxes are inexpensive to buy, but also fairly simple to make and install (Swift Conservation has advice and templates<\/a> on its website). Your box should include a concave nest cup as a base for the the birds to build on<\/a>, and be installed under the eaves at a minimum of five metres high, away from windows, with a clear flightpath (no powerlines or trees or other obstacles); it also shouldn\u2019t be exposed to full summer sun. One box (or brick) is good; but if you have space, go for more. \u201cSwifts like being in loose colonies, so if you can get three or four or five boxes in, so much the better,\u201d says Anderson. If you can\u2019t install safely yourself, Mayer recommends contacting TV aerial installers, who are often happy to come out for small jobs such as this.<\/p>\n

Swift nest boxes are cheap and relatively easy to install. Photograph: Chris Deeney\/Alamy<\/p>\n

Be patient and welcome other occupants
If another bird uses your brick or box (\u201cEight species of birds have been surveyed to breed in swift boxes and bricks,\u201d says Bourne-Taylor), that\u2019s fine. House sparrows \u2013 frequent swift box occupants \u2013 are another red list species<\/a> needing help. \u201cHaving the nesting site for smaller birds like sparrows is really good for those birds, and also helps attract swifts,\u201d says Bourne-Taylor.<\/p>\n

\u201cSwifts are big enough and mean enough that they will actually evict sparrows,\u201d says Anderson (plus early-nesting sparrows may even fledge a brood before the swifts arrive).<\/p>\n

Offering swifts hospitality can be a long game \u2013 they may not find or use your box or brick for a few years. But, with an average life expectancy of nine years (the oldest recorded swift in the UK was 17), when they do, you should have the pleasure of their company for many summers. \u201cThat is their home for life,\u201d says Bourne-Taylor. \u201cIt\u2019s the only ground they will ever intentionally touch in their whole lifetime. What an investment!\u201d<\/p>\n

Broadcast swift sounds
Playing recordings of swift calls can attract prospecting birds. Swift Conservation<\/a> sells a CD or MP3 file that you can play from a windowsill during the season. June and July are especially good, says Anderson: \u201cThat\u2019s when young swifts are most likely to be prospecting.\u201d<\/p>\n

Protect insects
Swifts are exclusively insectivorous, so anything you can do to protect and encourage insects will help them out: recent research<\/a> found that a number of migratory bird species were leaving the UK underweight for their marathon journeys. \u201cCreating wildlife havens, if you have a garden, or advocating for green spaces in your local community will collectively help all wildlife and the ecosystem as a whole,\u201d says Bourne-Taylor.<\/p>\n

Planting \u201canything that\u2019s got flowers, nectar, fruit, berries, will support insect life, and support bird life,\u201d says Mayer. \u201cSloes, hawthorne, spindle trees, broom \u2026 There are loads of plants. We need lots of nice bushy gardens and verges and hedges.\u201d The RSPB has a wildlife gardening guide<\/a> with more ideas.<\/p>\n

Get involved in local swift stuff
What help swifts need most will depend on where you live: it can vary from intervening in planning, to campaigning, or creating a \u201cswift street<\/a>\u201d (lots of nest boxes in one neighbourhood). If you want to get involved, contact a swift group (you can find your nearest through the Swift Local Network<\/a>), talk to your nearest RSPB group<\/a>, or look out for local activities in Swift Awareness Week<\/a> (27 June-5 July).<\/p>\n

Be a citizen scientist
Knowledge is power in conservation. \u201cThere\u2019s a whole range of different citizen science schemes out there to contribute to,\u201d says Anderson. The British Trust for Ornithology\/RSPB\/JNCC Breeding Bird Survey is one option; sign-up instructions are available on the BTO website<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Young birds can misjudge their first flight, but can be helped. Photograph: intek1\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

Help grounded birds
\u201cIt\u2019s usually young birds that end up on the ground; they misjudge their first flight when they leave the nest,\u201d says Anderson. Juveniles need the help of a swift carer, but, he suggests, if you find an adult bird with full-grown feathers, \u201cit\u2019s worth having one go to see if it\u2019ll fly off your hand. Put it on your hand, up as high as you can, and bounce your hand gently, so that the swift feels unstable and puts its wings out. Never, never throw: if it can\u2019t fly anyway, it\u2019s just going to nosedive.\u201d If that doesn\u2019t work, contact a swift carer: there\u2019s a list on the Swift Conservation site<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Enjoy them
Swift season is so short and spectacular \u2013 enjoy it, says Anderson, and let it inspire you to help them out.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Swifts are wheeling, screaming endurance athletes. They don\u2019t touch the earth for nine months of the year and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":508779,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[1397,90,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-508778","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-environment","8":"tag-environment","9":"tag-science","10":"tag-uk","11":"tag-united-kingdom","12":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/508778","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=508778"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/508778\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/508779"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=508778"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=508778"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=508778"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}