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swifts in NPT
Find out more about these amazing birds and how you can help them below!
what is a swift?
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Swifts are a species of bird that spend almost all their lives on the wing
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Swifts migrate to the UK to breed. They fly from Africa to arrive here in May, before returning in August, that's a round trip of 12,000 miles!
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Swifts only land when they enter their nest, the rest of the time they're flying. This means they can eat, sleep, bathe and even mate on the wing.
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Swifts mate for life and return to the same nest site every year. So if you have swifts in your property, it will be the same pair returning year on year!
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In summer evenings swifts group up and call out to each other. These groups are known as 'screaming parties' and the sound of summer for many people.
Why are swifts in trouble?
Numbers of swifts breeding in the UK have declined by 70% since 1995, the main reasons for this are thought to be:
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Loss of nesting sites - as buildings are renovated or replaced, the gaps which swifts would have been using are disappearing. Swifts come back to the same nest site every year, so the loss of a nest site means a swift pair might not successfully breed that year.
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Decreased insect numbers - swifts exclusively eat flying insects. Loss of habitat and increased use of chemicals means that insect numbers are in decline as well. Less insects means less food for both the adult swifts and their chicks.
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Climate change - Weather patterns are becoming more unpredictable. Chicks are overheating in their nests, weather for foraging is less reliable and migration timing might also be affected.
how you can help
Luckily there are many ways you can help swifts! To find out more click the menu below to navigate to the different pages:
MAKE A SWIFT!
Help raise awareness about swifts by making your very own Selwyn or Seren!
It could be as simple as making a swift and telling your friends and family what you've learnt about them. Or your community group could create a whole screaming party of swifts for a display!
Tag us on social media to show us your makes @NPTwildlife or @Neath Port Talbot Local Nature Partnership and use the hashtag #selwyntheswift or #serentheswift
What we've been doing for swifts in NPT
Click through the gallery to see what work we've been doing to help breeding swift numbers in Neath Port Talbot and raise awareness about swifts.
Join us for one of our summer swift walks, keep an eye on the events page in Spring!
We've installed a custom swift tower in Glantawe Riverside Park. The swifts know it's there so we're hoping it won't be too long until we have our first breeding pair!
During Swift Awareness Week we have displays about swifts in some NPT libraries like this one in Pontardawe
Join us for one of our summer swift walks, keep an eye on the events page in Spring!