Swift (Apus apus) SAP - Species
Action Plan
Clare Darlaston, Concern for Swifts
(Scotland) |
Adult Swift in Hand - Photo Ian Livingston |
Action Plan
written for North Lanarkshire LBAP.
Information relating to North Lanarkshire is in italics and obviously
needs to be changed for other areas)
1. Current status
Swifts are summer visitors to Britain, arriving
in Scotland from Africa in the first or second week in May and leaving
in August. They are notable for their wild aerobatics and shrill
screaming around roofs and chimneys in summer when they reach incredible
speeds. They are fully adapted to life on the wing. In North
Lanarkshire, Swifts are mainly concentrated in the Motherwell/Clyde
Valley area, Coatbridge and Kilsyth. It is thought that Swifts
originally nested in crevices in cliffs and holes in trees. More
recently, on the evolutionary time-scale, they have adapted to nesting
almost exclusively in buildings. They are recorded as nesting in
church towers, under tiled roofs, under the eaves of buildings where
they gain access via gaps and cracks in stonework, bricks or concrete,
and in holes in walls. If disturbed or excluded from a nest site,
they may find it difficult to relocate to a new nest site, at least
for that season. Young pairs find new unoccupied nest sites during
their first summer as adults, and return to breed in them the following
year, i.e. when they are 2 years old. The British Trust for Ornithology
estimates the total swift population in Britain to be 80,000, naming
Strathclyde Park as an important feeding area for swifts. It is
also significant as a ringing base, but information about the sites
and numbers of breeding colonies in North Lanarkshire is currently
piecemeal and incomplete. Swifts are protected under the Wildlife
and Countryside Act of 1981, which makes it illegal to knowingly
destroy or disturb the nest site during the nesting season. They
have not yet been awarded "threatened" status. However an increasing
number of people both in Britain and abroad are becoming concerned
about the drop in numbers. Surveys are underway to attempt to quantify
the fall.
2. Current factors causing decline
An important reason for the drop in numbers
is loss of nest sites due to modern building practices. Increasingly
swifts are excluded from their traditional sites by repairs which
seal all gaps and cover ventilation spaces. Wire mesh or metal or
plastic grids are now used to cover ventilation gaps and the renovation
of older buildings for new uses usually involves the rigorous pointing
of any small gaps or cracks in stonework.
3. Current action
NLC Housing Committee adopted a policy
for the protection of swift nest sites in November 1999.
Survey of swift colonies is in progress.
Leaflets are available from North Lanarkshire council country
parks or planning department.
4. Action
plan objectives and targets
The objective of the action plan is to halt
and reverse the decline of swift populations in North Lanarkshire.
In principle this is not a difficult task, because permitting swifts
access to actual or potential nest sites is technically easy. Swifts
seem to prefer a small entrance giving access to a larger internal
space for nesting. The small entrance generally excludes house sparrows
and starlings. However, achieving action requires continuing liaison
with house owners, local authority personnel, NGOs, builders and
developers.
5. Proposed actions |
| Policy and Legislation |
| |
Agree design
details for future repairs with local authority officials(Concern
for Swifts (Scotland),Local Authority) |
| |
Have swift conservation
measures included in planning conditions for new build or
change of use proposals in suitable locations. |
| Site safeguard
and management |
| |
Liaise with historic
building conservation authorities to promote conservation
of swift nest sites when considering grant aid for the repair
or renovation of historic buildings. Involve Historic Scotland,
National Trust or the Scottish Executive as relevant. (Concern
for Swifts (Scotland),Local authority, RSPB) |
| Species Management
and Protection |
| |
Promote the practice
that building repair work should not begin between mid May
and end of July where swift nest sites are suspected to exist.
(Concern for Swifts (Scotland), Local authority, RSPB, SWT) |
| Advisory |
| |
Promote designs which
permit swift access where buildings are being rennovated or
when new buildings are being constructed; and promote the
use of nest boxes where this is not possible, e.g. where there
is no suitable accessible space. (Local authority) |
| |
Promote the use of Swift
nest boxes as a tool for education and awareness e.g. on schools
and in Country Parks. Make links with the Eco-Schools or Sustainable
Schools project. (Concern for Swifts (Scotland), Local authority) |
| Future Research
and Monitoring |
| |
Identify locations where
swifts nest in North Lanarkshire, in order to locate colonies
or nest sites. |
| |
Monitor numbers of feeding
Swifts over key sites such as Strathclyde Loch and Drumpellier
Lochs. (Local authority rangers, RSPB, SOC, SWT) |
| Communication
and Publicity |
| |
Make available a leaflet
and guidance note on swifts and nest site conservation. (Concern
for Swifts (Scotland)) Publicise project in libraries Make
available, on request, teaching aid "Swifts and flight- for
the 5-14 curriculum" Use local newspapers |
|
|
