The Derbyshire Swift Conservation Project (DSCP), run by the Derbyshire Wildlife Trust in partnership with the Derbyshire Ornithological Society, aims to raise awareness of the rapidly declining species, with numbers falling by 60% in the past 25 years.
The five evening swift-watching walks to be held in Bradwell, Duffield, Rowsley, Wirksworth and Melbourne between 1st and 9th July are free to attend but booking is essential.
Nick Brown, Wildlife Enquiries Officer at Derbyshire Wildlife Trust and instigator of the Derbyshire Swift Conservation Project and Awareness Week said:
“Swifts are magic birds whose aerial lives mean that they only land when they have to build their nests and lay their eggs. They do this by entering roofs using tiny holes where mortar has fallen out at the top of walls just below the eaves.
“However, when new plastic soffits are fitted, external insulation is installed or a new roof is added, the access holes these birds use are routinely blocked up.
“Installing special swift nest boxes below the eaves of existing buildings is a cheap and simple way to help our swifts. Developers can fit internal ‘swift bricks’ to walls as they are being built. These discreet hollowed-out ‘bricks’ are big enough to allow swifts to nest inside them while preventing the birds getting any further into the building.
“Swifts make almost no mess so having them nesting is good for the birds and but also good for people, who can take so much enjoyment from this wildlife.”