I'm from Morocco (Casablanca to be exact)..and swifts are one of my favorite birds there used to be lots of them here especially during the summer and they live under window shutters (the exterior ones not sure if that's what they are called) they are lively in summer I remember spending hours watching them when I was young. Unfortunately I noticed there numbers declining over the years and just assumed they changed habitats. Didn't know it was a global decline.. Anyway this was an informative video thanks
My biggest concern for all migrating birds, are wind farms & although certain birds fly at higher altitudes, it's often weather department. Let's not forget the Needle Tailed Swift that meet with it's demise, due to a wind turbine on the isle of Harris. ☹️
The study done on the Cambridge Swifts with geotrackers just a few years or so ago, showed the male birds stayed mainly in the Congo basin and the females went much further south and east. Does this new study contradict that I wonder? Would be great to see the whole of the study, fascinating stuff. Thank you BTO
Swifts seen May 12th in Sanquhar, southern Scotland this year. They nest in uninhabited buildings off the High Street. Smaller numbers than a decade ago. I had no idea they were in the UK for such a short time.each year.
I miss all of our purple martins. But the pond dried up and all the houses we built for them fell into disrepair and diintegrated from lack of any maintenance at all.
This my Spirit Bird when I first saw theses birds in flight I feel in love with them all ...I praised God The Most High The Farther for them all and there Mystical way of fight . The only bird in the world 🌎 that's stays In flight when they sleep and for 10 months can stay in full flight mode....there is no bird that can do this ....there is nothing mankind has invented that can do this...I always look for them In Summer time when they fly over my block 🚫 of flats and houses 🏘 amazing grace and speed and are a collective family 👪...They stick together ❤ always. From Zion an administration of our Most High Father's Creations. X ❤ X
Here in New Zealand we seem to have some sort of European swift 'up to about 5 years ago I had never seen one 'nor did I know that they were in NZ. One summer's day I was painting a house on a vineyard 'and my attention was drawn to a huge flock of birds landing on two very large trees at the far end of the property 'there were several hundred of them 'I had a closer look and noted the pointy fluttery wings and v tail's 'they were very black like a blackbird.I was told by someone that they are a Swift' and that they were in Australia' and migrated to the north island of NZ and have been slowly making their way further south' it was inland lower south island that I saw them ' after that first sighting I started to see them regularly 'mainly around the edges of a lake. I have since moved to the upper south island 'and a couple of weeks ago one of them was driving at me aggressively in the town's main street. They look pretty much like the swifts in your video' but blacker and I think smaller . Do you know anything about what variety these could be ? There's no shortage of other European birds here 'sparrows' blackbirds'thrush' starlings' gold finches' chaffinch's' . Thanks.
Hi, thanks for your question. Our best guess would be Welcome Swallow? But a New Zealand based bird organisation would be better able to answer the question.
@@BTOvideo thank you for your reply 'I've just googled the Welcome Swallow in NZ' but no that's not what I've seen . My ones are deep black all over . I's the welcome Swallow a nz native? I'II try to spare some time finding out about the black one's👍
Many thanks for this Chris but its not quite true to say that the reasons for the decline are not entirely clear as they are. It is a) the loss of existing sites largely due to replacement of fascias and soffits with plastic and b) that very few houses built in the last fifteen years provide nesting opportunities due to modern building regs. You can read my further comments about this on the Hampshire Swifts blog.
i live in the city and only see swifts flying way up high, very interesting that we can find this much about these birds who spend the bulk of their time on the wing.
Fascinating information, interesting that we get both types of swift migration, i e southern Europe type and Northern Europe. Thats if I understand correctly?
