2024 01 Spring with bleed V4 - Flipbook - Page 49
St James Church has just signed up for a special
survey to potentially help migrating swifts. Both
swifts and house martins are on the UK Red List of Birds
of Conservation Concern, their breeding populations
having recently declined by 58% (1995-2018) and 57%
(1969-2018) respectively. One of the big issues with
swifts is the loss of their traditional nesting sites through
renovation/repairs or even demolition of buildings which
can wipe out a swift nest site or even a whole
colony. The survey will be carried out by an expert from
Devon Birds, Jerry Horn and will look at the feasibility of
Africa to KN—a
installing swift boxes inside the steeple of the church.
round trip of over
The boxes are fully contained, swifts never enter the
10,000 miles
church, produce no mess and do not interfere with bell
ringing. Jerry has just had permission to install 180 swift nest chambers in
Exeter Cathedral! The survey is the orst stage after which a report is prepared
to present a plan and possible costings. This is part of
a large project organised by Devon Birds to install
swift boxes in churches across
Devon and has proved very
successful. Having adapted to
nesting on our buildings and
coming back year after year to the
same site, they now need us to
make sure that their nest sites do
Above/left Vivien Drake
not get wiped out. New plastic
with Chrissie King of the
fascia boards seal up nest sites
KNPCC
and stop house martins making
their mud nests, but there are ways to make up for this and
there is much advice available for builders. No need for
destruction. The orst stage is to survey your area for existing nests sites on
buildings. Look out for the arrival of swifts and house martins from the end of
April, watch for house martins building nests and swifts entering nest sites.
Swifts are incredibly fast and 8discreet9 entering sites on buildings and can get
easily overlooked. Enlist volunteers to 8walk the bounds9 regularly on summer
evenings and record swifts and house martin
nests. A lovely occupation on a warm summer
evening! In this way, our group, Chulmleigh Swift
& House Martin Project, discovered 3 swifts nest
sites on the Chulmleigh Town Hall last year. Just a
nash of swift disappearing under the
wooden soot! Our group, has been
House Martins (l)
monitoring these birds since 2021 and
and swifts (r) in
installing wooden swift boxes and even
Chulmleigh
artiocial house martin nest cups. We are
only too happy to share our experience, provide advice and even come and
visit as time allows. Contact via chulmleighswiftsproject@gmail.com
Vivien Drake
To read online—www.kingsnymptononline.com/latest-edition
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