Swift Streets

Team together with your neighbours to become a swift street! The Really Wild Lockleaze project is looking for an ideal street to be our first Swift Street. You would get swift boxes and free installation onto the eaves of your roof - all you need to do is team together with some neighbours so we can put up a few boxes in one location (swifts are highly social birds and prefer to nest in groups!).

To qualify, you need to have a roof with eaves in a location that doesn't get too much sun, has an easy flight path to them, and road access. Ideally you will have made some swift sightings on your street.

Swifts also require feeding grounds around where they live, so any actions you can take to increase insect life be it wildflowers, hedges or a pond, will massively help swifts and other birds in your local area.

Swifts rarely land and have been observed flying for up to 10 months at a time! This means eating, sleeping and even mating whilst on the wing. Sadly, numbers have plummeted over the past century, however on a positive note they have shown they can recover if suitable foraging and nesting sites are provided (the Wild Mile will help insect populations and provide a vital food source for swifts). Nesting sites are harder for them to find in modern times, as loft voids have been filled in and insulated. This means nest boxes have a crucial role to play. They are also the fastest birds in level flight, with an impressive top speed of 69mph. swifts migrate 3,400 miles twice a year, stopping off to refuel in places like Portugal and France along the way. They also eat mosquitoes!