At first glance, these avian athletes can look very similar, but there are some key differences between them. Have a read of our handy ID guide and soon you’ll know your Swifts from your Swallows.
You could see Swifts flying high in the sky over most habitats, as they search for small invertebrates to eat and to feed to their chicks. Nesting Swifts zoom around buildings at roof level.
Swifts migrate to the UK from Africa each year, and only spend a few months with us while their raise their chicks. Swifts begin arriving from late April, with most arriving in May. They then head back to Africa from early August onwards.
Look out for nesting Swifts near you and record them on the Swift Mapper.
Swifts are masters of the air and spend almost their entire lives in flight – eating, drinking, sleeping and even mating on the wing. They usually only land when it’s time to nest, so you’ll never see them perched on overhead wires like Swallows. Groups of Swifts can often be seen flying around rooftops at high speed.
After a long flight back from their summer in Africa, Swifts have one thing on their minds – to mate. Swifts pair for life, returning to the same site each year for a little nest renovation before laying and incubating their eggs.
They like to live in houses and churches, squeezing through tiny gaps to nest inside roofs. But as more old buildings are renovated and gaps in soffits closed up, Swift nest sites are fast disappearing. This, in part, resulted in Swifts being added to the red list in the 2021 UK Conservation Status Report.
During its lifetime, a Swift can fly around two million miles – that’s equivalent to more than four trips to the Moon and back!
Their screaming call is one of the most evocative sounds of summer. But in some places their calls have fallen silent. Sadly, Swifts are on the Red List of conservation concern, declining by 62% between 1995 and 2021.