Swifts & Things

Well I have to admit this year hasn’t been the best year, not so much on the swift front but more on a personal level, a culmination of events has taken its toll on me emotionally and mentally and has left me with little or no motivation but fingers crossed the year does look like it’s ending on a more positive note.

But I do need to have a recap of my Swift season though, otherwise I will kick myself later down the line if I don’t make the effort. All three pairs had laid in the first week of June and my first glimpse of chicks was around the 24th/25th June for box 3 and 20a however box 15 birds did’nt incubate innitally after laying one egg on the 4th then a second egg on the 12th, their first chick was spotted on July 2nd. Where boxes 3 and 20a were pretty much identicle when it came to laying, it also showed when it came to the young birds fledging as they both all left the nest around the 4th/5th of August, box 15’s young fledged around the 13th.

That brings me to new birds for the season, prospecting was unfortunatly poor in June with odd days here and there but for the most part was uneventful with maybe poor wet weather playing a factor.

July however did pick up and I was blessed with some great displays around the house and watched excited as new birds tentatively investigated boxes and finally with some disappearing inside.

• Box 4 ~ one Swift roosted from 22nd May to 31st, not seen again after.
• Box 5 ~ one Swift seen inside for aproximately 15 minutes.
• Box 7 ~ 3rd Aug caught sight of a Swift entering very confidently and again on the 13th.
• Box 16 ~ Swift seen entering on the 12th July and subsequent days since, it was later established a pair had taken the box and roosted the remainder of July and was also seen taking nesting material inside. Last seen on the 2nd August.
• Box 17 ~ Two Swift seen on 20th july, 22nd July and last activity on the 5th August.
• Box 18 ~ One Swift seen entering 20th July and promptly scared a Sparrow that was currently inside out.
• Box 21a ~ One swift seen entering 14th July then in August two birds seen coming and going, with the last activity seen on the 8th August.
• Box 22 ~ One bird seen entering on the 2nd and 3rd of August AM and the 4th PM
• Box 23 ~ July 22nd lots of prospecting during the day then one bird watched for over 5 minutes attempting to roost as light was seriously fading before succeeding, seen again coming and going 2nd/5th August.
• Box 24 ~ One Swift seen on the 2nd August clinging on before going inside.

I’m very happy with what I was able to see and document with all the new box activity and its more than likely I have missed other coming and goings over the days however it certainly bodes well for next years season.

As always I’m a little behind in my first post of this swift season 🙄 oh well start as I mean to go on I guess.

I originally opened up the entrance holes to my boxes on the 9th of May after seeing at least half a dozen local Swift milling about over my house that day and subsequently a few more over the days. I didn’t have any back in boxes however and instead had a flurry of Sparrow activity, one had already built and was sat on four eggs(I’d forgotten to close this box) while others built in newly opened boxes and even having the audacity to steal the material from the Swift nest in box 15, so much so nothing remained of the nest at all.

Anyway it wasn’t until the evening on the 17th May when my first Swifts returned to their box(N⁰ 3) sadly I was at work but my good wife rushed out in her pyjamas to video them for me 😂. Surprisingly it was the exact same day as last year’s arrival only a different pair, then the following morning a single bird was seen sat in box 20a that had arrived very early. Then on the 19th May my original pair arrived back to their box minus the nest, this will be their third year back in my house and the second breeding year and will always be my favourites.

On May 22nd when I checked my cameras before bed I was surprised to find a single new bird in box 4, I do recall last year seeing a Swift on occasions flying into this box so now it’s a case of waiting to see if it has a mate that will join it.

Finally on the 24th of May after a week of roosting alone the Swift in box 20a was joined by another, now initially it looked like they were squabbling and fighting for a few minutes before they settled and went on to begin mutually preening one another. Also what was interesting was it had spent the night in the box below (N⁰ 20) that sparrows had already nested and are currently sat on eggs, so had got its holes mixed up.

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So the last month or so I’ve been busy frantically installing cameras into boxes to hopefully give me a little more info and not leave me guessing as to what’s going on under my eves. After last year’s new arrivals that I thought were non breeders, this should now take some of the guess work out should I gain new birds this year.

I’m a pretty competant diy’er however I will say I had a few hurdles at times during the installation, so my tips if anyone else is going down the same route are always double check or even third check lol. I initially began threading the cable under my eves only to find I had them around the wrong way and had to re do five cables 🙄 not great when you’re working up a ladder 😂 Always check your cable and camera work before installing and where you can take the box down and set the camera up on the floor makes it easier for any adjustments to be done rather than up a ladder.

  Being on a budget I’d kept everything as cheap as I could to afford as many cameras as possible however it does come with the drawback with regards to the quality of images. The cost of 16 cheap basic cameras I picked up for less than £200 as opposed to nearly £1000 if I wanted better images. However after seeing some other nest cams on social media I have taken the plunge and just ordered myself one 🙈 fingers crossed it comes before my first pair arrive back to their holiday home😁.

Other preparations included removing old Sparrow nests that were built last year and I re adjusted the nest of the Swift pair that ejected Sparrows who were already nesting. I was debating whether to just leave this as it was but due to the sheer amount inside what was already a smaller spec box, I thought it best to remove the bulk of it whilst keeping the nest intact before securing it back in place in the same spot.

As I write this post I’ve already seen my first Swift of the year, actually I’ve seen quite a few since my first which was on the 25th of April and surprisingly despite the crap weather two days earlier than last years birds. Subsequent days threw up a few Swift here and there but it was today’s sighting that I had to write about here.

This morning I visited my local patch of coast to do a spot of bird watching, the weather was dry but with strong westerly winds with gusts to over 40mph that were blowing offshore and across the English Channel that caused a nice swell and some choppy seas to boot. It was a fairly quite sea watch with mainly the usual common birds putting in an appearance however in amongst them I did pick up a few Swift on their last leg to our shores.

About half a mile offshore and just metres above the swell and waves they were battling their way into the wind with such determination and grit. There was no graceful gliding, dipping or swooping we are all used to seeing as they go about their daily lives over our rooftops, these guys were on a mission, flapping hard and fast and heading straight in with no shits given in a bid to get over dry land as quick as possible.

Knowing how far they’ve come and to watch these few birds on the last leg of their journey arrive on our shores in such testing conditions will be a memory that will stick with me until I die.

Welcome back, I for one have missed you not being around.

Well if you came her looking for up to date posts on my Swift colony you best move along 😂 I’m not the most reliable person as you can see but I do need to draw to a close the final tally of this year’s Swift success.

That is definitely what its been in my eyes, after my non breeding pair from 2019 returned and began laying and initially unsuccessfully incubating. They then went on to lay again and successfully rear two chicks and the first Swift to ever fledge from my house, on inspection of their nest they did in fact lay two eggs that were discarded in the nest box still.

Just as impressive was the arrival of two new pairs in June taking boxes on separate aspects of the house(front and back). I immediately thought they would be none breeders as this was the case with last year’s pair that arrived in June. But it just goes to show not all birds are equal and both went on to lay eggs and rear young.

I don’t have exact times, dates or numbers of fledged young as these boxes don’t have cameras but from my limited observations the birds on the front aspect fledged early September while the birds on the rear aspect were still around at least until the 21st of September, as the photo below was taken then.

What was also interesting about this nest was they took it from a pair of House Sparrow that had already began laying eggs, so I had to have a look inside to see how they had utilised the nesting material. Note the Sparrow egg still in amongst the nesting material.

The top pic shows the nest and it may look confusing, that’s because I’ve utilised the space above the main box once it’s pushed up under my eaves to create a second space on the roof of the box below.

So three breeding pairs for 2021 and plenty of prospecting birds leave me confident this relatively new colony can only get bigger and better in the next few years to come.

My plans before they return next year are to add a DVR cctv system. With cameras in as many boxes I can afford to install, to better record the progress of any birds that make my home their home.

About a week ago while viewing the video feed it appeared to be just the one chick in the box, so after viewing previous saved captures I was able to see the first chick had fledged on the morning of the 23rd. After previously spending long periods of time at the entrance, an adult returned for a feed and soon after was followed by the youngster.

Now I knew there was an age difference after watching the chicks grow in the early stages, so figured it would be a few days before the second bird followed suit. It was in fact 6 days later before the second bird fledged and again following the adult around five minutes after a feed and around the same time in the morning.

Also from what I can tell from footage, it appears that just one adult remained with the second chick to feed and roost up. Which makes me wonder, did the other adult remain with the first fledgling to then begin it’s journey South? Maybe someone more knowledgeable knows but I find it interesting none the less. The adult did return with another feed four hours later only to find an empty box and with that an end to their first successful year raising young. Since then the adult has still remained and roosted and probably enjoying some last minute respite before it’s journey back to Africa.

The other two pairs I really don’t see much of other than hearing the chicks in the nest still at times but it can’t be long before they to go on to fledge.

Finally I had views of the eldest chick in box 15 yesterday, like a brand new penny in pristine condition it sat surveying the world outside long enough for a few pictures.

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The young prospecting birds have been gone for over a week now which sadly means no more screaming acrobats around the house, I have been seeing up to twenty or so birds on occasions but usually up high and for the most part I’m seeing only four or five which I suspect are my resident birds.

Which brings me to a new situation and experience, last year I had no breeding birds so when they left that was it. Now I feel a sense of them having left but every now and then while I’m sat in my garden I’ll hear a woosh as an adult barely two feet above my head flys by on its approach and as I look up its already disappearing inside its box with another feed for its chicks.

The chicks are nearly four weeks old now and will fledge around six weeks so I have their company for a while longer yet. I’m frequently seeing the chicks excercising on camera in box 15 and occasionally the older of the two will sneak a peak out the entrance only to head out of sight if I rush out with my camera 🙄

Box number 3 and my non breeders that proved otherwise, I’m now seeing frequent chick poo on my doorstep 😂 now I did read that Swifts are clean nester and don’t crap under the nest like a House Martin would and even eat the chicks poo from the nest box (vid to follow) but once the chicks grow and are able to they will move and try and aim it out the entrance. With box number 3 having its entrance underneath the box, it makes this all the more easier for the chicks, still I’m not complaining and by next year our house will sport a nice new canopy over the door and give us and the postman a little more protection.

Update 21:00

Seems to be a pattern emerging with these birds, I haven’t seen my pair in box 20a for at least a week, granted I don’t spend every minute in my garden but I’ve been on annual leave for over a week now and I’m quite frequently out the back, yet still haven’t seen them so assumed they had already departed South with the prospectors that have gone also.

Que 20:30 this evening when we was enjoying a drink in the garden, when a Swift disappeared into box 20a 🤔 hmmmm surely this isn’t another breeding pair I wrongly assumed was non breeding. Well the sound of chicks that seem to be resonating from the box after I stood underneath may be proving me wrong yet again.

One thing is for sure it just goes to show how they can go unnoticed in and around the nest, unless you have the time and resources to patiently watch.

I was looking through some pictures I took on the 31st July of my non breeding pair in box 20a and interestingly to see a House Sparrow egg in the shot. This pair took to the box on 26th July and I’d seen the Sparrows nest building at the time but didn’t realise they had already laid at least one egg and just shows how Swifts will dominate a nest site if they choose. I shall inspect the box once they’ve departed as I’m intrigued to see just how much nesting material is inside and how the Swifts have worked on making it their own.

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My chicks in box 15 are nearly three weeks old now and the parents are still working hard keeping them fed. I occasionally see the adults in box 3 disappearing into the box but as its on my front aspect it’s not always easy to keep tabs, especially at the rate of knots they come in at. I do however frequently hear the chicks, so hopefully in time as they get older they will start peering out the entrance.

Swift numbers have now drastically reduced now over the last few days going from double figures to just five doing the rounds this morning and I guess these are more than likely my resident birds.

I’ll start with the juvenile prospecting birds, my last good day of prospecting was a few days ago now and sadly it will be next year now before I’m treated to masses of Swift bombarding my eves. This morning still had twenty or so milling around with the odd scream heard but these were mostly at high altitude.

On to my birds in box 15, the chicks are two weeks old now and look to be developing fast although one does look slightly behind the other in terms of size and development. I see this today on the camera and already its exercising its wings in the box.

Finally finishing with my non breeding pairs or what I thought were non breeding, both were still roosting as of the 28th July but I noticed today the birds in box 3 making frequent visits. Now this isnt that extraordinary however I didn’t notice any nesting material being carried but then as the box is on the front aspect and most of my viewing is from the side aspect of my house which does make observation to the front harder, plus no camera in that box.

Later in the day I did manage to head to the front and under the box not long after an adult returned and I’m sure I could hear the faint jingles of young Swift coming from the box. Now I’m not 100% sure as the sound of swiftlets is still new to my ears but I also heard it again while in my bathroom as the box is positioned just above the bathroom window. Either way I’m sure it won’t be long before I know for certain if I’ve finished this year with two breeding pairs.

Updated 30th July

This evening I stood out under box 15 listening to the chicks subtle noises before then standing under box 3 and hearing the very same chick noises. So I can now confirm I do in fact have two breeding pairs this year and my guess is they are of a similar age as the birds in box 15 so will use them to gage when the likely fledging date will be.

I also recorded some footage from box 15 that shows the difference in development between the two chicks, presumably down to one hatching later than the other.