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CAIRNGORMS SWIFTS NEST SURVEY

FRONT PAGE

Swifts are amazing, beautiful birds. However, this dramatic summer 
bird is in danger of disappearing from our skies. 

The latest figures from the British Trust for Ornithology indicate a 
62% decline in the Scottish swift population from 1994 to 2003. 
The most likely cause of this decline is the loss of nest sites 
through the refurbishment of old buildings and new building design. 

With your help, the Cairngorms Local Biodiversity Action Plan 
(LBAP) can work towards halting - even reversing - the decline 
of swifts in the Cairngorms area … 


PAGE 2

How You Can Help 

Make Your Home Swift Friendly 
Many modern buildings and renovation schemes offer opportunities
for creating in-built nest cavities or nest boxes. Making a place for 
swifts costs little, does not imperil the structure, preserves the bird from 
extinction and contributes much to our environment and quality of life. 

So if swifts don’t nest in your building, why not create a home for them? 
There are a variety of nest boxes that can be installed in or outside 
your house. 

If swifts already nest in your home, please note where they nest and 
avoid any building work that will block or remove their nesting sites. 

Swifts Nest Survey 
By getting involved in the Cairngorms LBAP Swifts Nest Survey, 
and completing the attached form, you can help contribute to 
safeguarding swift populations in the Cairngorms for future 
generations to marvel at. 


PAGE 3

Swift Facts 

Swifts are supreme fliers. They spend almost all their life on the 
wing, mating and sleeping in the air and only landing to breed. 

They are plain, sooty brown in colour, with large sickle shaped 
wings, a short, forked tail and are bigger than martins or swallows. 

Swifts arrive in the Cairngorms in mid-May and stay for just three 
months. Then they migrate back to Central and Southern Africa. 

Fully protected by UK law, swifts do no harm and make very little mess. 
They eat only flying insects, catching as many as 40,000 every day. 

On warm summer evenings, local swifts will gather in wild ‘screaming’ 
parties, chasing around the buildings where they nest. 

Swifts are naturally cave, tree-hole and cliff nesters but most have 
switched their nesting to man-made structures, under roof tiles, in 
the eaves and in lofts. S


PAGE 4

Swifts Nest Survey - When and Where to Look 

The best time to look for swifts is in the morning before 9am and in the evening, 
a few hours before dusk. Fair weather is best. Swifts may be found anywhere, 
in buildings or in natural features and you will need to look very closely to spot 
their nest sites. 

Date and time 

Location - please be as accurate as possible (house number, street, postcode, 
building type) 

Grid Reference (optional) 

Number of nest sites 

Number of swift sightings 

Screaming parties yes/no 


PAGE 5

Swifts Nest Survey 

When did you first see swifts arrive? 

Date 

Location 

When was your last sighting of swifts? 

Date

Location

General Comments 

Please complete this form as fully as possible, adding any general comments you wish. 
If you want to be contacted about future surveys, please add your name and address. 
Completed forms should be returned to: Stephen Corcoran, Cairngorms LBAP Officer, 
14 The Square, Grantown-on-Spey, Moray PH26 3HG. Thank you for your help. 

This information may be stored on a database and will be used by the Cairngorms 
LBAP for wildlife conservation and management. 


BACK PAGE

Cairngorms Local Biodiversity Action Plan (LBAP) 

This plan is a long term initiative, involving many different partners, 
that seeks to deliver actions for biodiversity. All the habitats and 
species of the Angus Glens, Badenoch and Strathspey, Atholl and 
Glenshee, Upper Deeside, Strathdon and Glenlivet are covered within 
the Cairngorms LBAP. 

Further Information and Contacts 

For more information on nest boxes, swift friendly building techniques 
and swifts in general, please visit the following websites: 
www.concernforswifts.com, tel: 0141 554 8262 and 
www.londons-swifts.org.uk. 

If you wish to speak to someone about the Cairngorms Swifts Nest 
Survey, please contact: The Cairngorms LBAP Officer, 
14 The Square, Grantown-on-Spey, Moray PH26 3HG, 
tel: 01479 870528 or email: stephencorcoran@cairngorms.co.uk. 

If you would like a large print version of this leaflet, please contact the 
Cairngorms National Park Authority for a copy, tel: 01479 873535. 

This leaflet is funded by Scottish Natural Heritage and the Cairngorms 
National Park Authority. 

Photographs by Derek Brown, Erich Kaiser, Seyed Babak Musavi 
and Graham Roberts.