Click here to download the Roscommon Swift Survey 2020

40 localities (towns and villages) in the county were surveyed.

117 active Swift nest sites were confirmed.

The main Swift populations were found to exist in Roscommon Town with 44 active nests confirmed followed by Boyle and Ballaghaderreen with 14 and 12 respectively.

The key to ensuring a future for Swifts in the county is to protect existing colonies which act as a source population. To ensure this happens it is important to encourage individual communities to take ownership and responsibility for their local Swifts and to carry out the required actions to protect them into the future.

What are Swifts?

Swifts are a small species of bird that visit Ireland to breed during the spring and summer seasons. These birds arrive in early May and usually depart as soon as chicks have flown their nest by early August. Swifts live most of their lives "on the wing", where they have adapted to feed, drink, mate and sleep in flight, landing only when they enter a nest site to breed. In fact, once a young swift has flown its nest, it will remain on the wing for the next three to four years until they are ready to breed. Unlike Swallows or House Martins, whose nest structures can be seen under the eaves of houses and in sheds and other structures, Swift nests are hidden in cavities. These cavities can be found in masonry, under gutters, or roof spaces of old buildings where they can gain access through available gaps in broken fascia and soffit or under roof tiles etc. As a result, the nest of a Swift is much less visible. The best way to identify a Swift nest is to observe a Swift entering or leaving the cavity containing the nest. Occasionally, "whitewashing" or the presence of visible droppings can be seen below the nest. Swifts are site faithful, meaning that they return to the same nest site year on year.

The major challenge faced by breeding Swifts is the loss of suitable nest sites. In recent years, renovation and destruction of old properties and the design and use of modern building materials have acted to reduce access to Swifts significantly, leaving no cavities and therefore no available nest sites for breeding Swifts. We have essentially created a housing problem for Swifts. The loss of existing nest sites coupled with other wider environmental issues such as problems caused by climate change has resulted in large declines in Swift populations. It is with this in mind that many local authorities including Roscommon County Council have been motivated to conduct county Swift surveys to establish the distribution and density of nesting Swifts at county level and to identify measures to help conserve this iconic urban species into the future.

Swift Surveys Nationwide:

BirdWatch Ireland has already completed Swift Surveys in seven counties (Laois, Offaly, Westmeath, Tipperary, Meath, Wicklow and Sligo) and in summer 2020 they surveyed four more counties, namely, Roscommon, Leitrim, Clare and Dublin (South Dublin CoCo). It is hoped that communities and individuals in these areas will follow-up on what is learned through this work by taking direct conservation actions for Swifts in their respective communities in the months and years to come.

To find out more about Swifts and the 2020 County Swift Surveys the BirdWatch Ireland Facebook page can be accessed at www.facebook.com/BirdWatchIreland/ and the BirdWatch Ireland YouTube Channel here: www.youtube.com/user/BirdWatchIreland

For more information on swifts you can download the Saving Swifts guide here

A limited number of hardcopies of Saving Swifts are available from the Heritage Office, please email heritage@roscommoncoco.ie with your name and address if you would like a copy posted out to you.

The 'County Roscommon Swift Survey 2020' is an initiative of the Roscommon County Council Heritage Office and County Roscommon Heritage Forum and is funded by the National Parks and Wildlife Service’s National Biodiversity Action Plan Fund.