The Swifts of Dervock Presbyterian Church!

When my friend Francis Devine heard about the wonderful Swift colony in Dervock, he was inspired to write this prose. * * * * *The Swifts of Dervock Presbyterian Churchfor Dick Glasgow and Stewart Laverty

Whether screeching black arrowheads ever flashed over the earliest dwellings in Dairbheog is unknown, but soon after 1835, when the spire of Dervock Presbyterian Church first stood proud in the north Antrim skies, Swifts - for some then gabhlanai gaoithe - began investigating its possibilities.

Caretaker Stewartie Laverty had craned skywards since he was a wean to watch the birds swirl around the steeple, their squealing screams heralding summer, fields of pastel blue flax, ripening oats, margins of pale yellow meadowsweet. Each late April, he searched the skies, ear cocked as he tended his duties for that heart-lift anthem that wound itself around the stone as joyful solstice garland.Today he leads the faithful to the tower top, dark perforated zinc sheeting inside the louvres acting as screen to allow them unobstrusively observe the nesting Swifts without disturbance. Thirteen families are documented, the enumerators' smiles broad, a mystery of two centuries solved, allowing Stewartie a quick laughing calculation as to how many Swiftlets had been baptised in his lifetime.by Francis Devine * * * * *

My Swifts have surprised me once again!

My Swifts have surprised me once again! 😮

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I spent most of yesterday in my garden again & despite frequent checks back to watch for any signs of life in the nest box, I saw none. Nor did I see any Swifts in flight the whole day, so I felt sure that they'd actually left & the last youngster must have fledged with them.

However, as I walked down my garden with my dogs this morning, around 9.30am, I was surprised to see 3 Swifts in the sky just to the West of my garden.

So it looks like the adults & last youngster must have spent another night in the nest box. Unfortunately I only had a landscape lens on my camera, so I was only able to get black speck shots of them. Now I'm wondering, will this really be the last time I'm going to see them .... or will they surprise me again! 😉 😀

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This is the landscape shot of them at 9.30, taken from my garden.

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This is the crop from that image showing the Swifts, 

as no more than three black dots.

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This is a Swift-eye view of my garden, looking South, 

from the access hole to their nest box.

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… and there they were – Gone!

Late on the evening of the 30th July, my last youngster, alone in the box since the 29th, was joined just as it was getting dark, first by one parent & then 10/15 mins later by the other parent.

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Their night vision must be excellent because they both just zoomed in, as if from nowhere, straight back into their nest box ... at speed. It was a very quiet evening & I clearly heard the woosh as each one flew back in & the slight clunk as each one hit the nest box entrance.

Early the next morning, the 31st July, it had fledged & they had all left, presumably for Africa. I can't believe just how much I miss their daily activity already, still, that's my first Swift nesting season over & my first pair produced 3 youngsters, so well done to them, it's wonderful to see my wee colony finally up & running. 

My boxes went up in 2015, in a rural location here in north Antrim, with no Swift activity, so 3 years is no time at all to have to wait for them to get started & now I have 2019 to look forward to ... onwards & upwards. :-)

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Surprise! Surprise!

Young Swift #3 appeared today!

I spent most of today, from around 8.30am working in my garden, then I went in for a late lunch until around 3pm. In all that time I saw no Swifts, so was beginning to think the adults may have decided to head home to Africa.

Imagine my surprise then, when I came back out at 4pm to see this small face of  yet another young Swift looking out at me, obviously looking for the adults to return with food, so I'm pretty sure this is youngster #3.

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I was a little bit concerned that I hadn't seen any Swifts around all day, so I decided to spend the rest of the day working in the garden so that I could see if they returned. 

Well, for the next SIX hours not one Swift appeared & I was beginning to think they might have deserted this youngster, perhaps frightened off by the stormy weather we'd had on Saturday.

However, at around 9.50 on this quiet, cloudy evening, as I was beginning to think it was just too dark for them to return, all of a sudden, from nowhere, there was a loud woosh & I could just make out one adult shooting straight back into the nest box. I waited for a further 20 minutes to see if it was going to emerge again, but no sign, so I decided to end my vigil., but just as I was walking away, there was another woosh & I just made out the other adult shooting straight back into the nest box, too.

Needless to say I was absolutely delighted to see that both parent birds were still looking after this last young Swift.

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You don't need to live in a town to put up nest boxes for Swifts!

Those who think you have to live in a town to be able to encourage Swifts to nest, by putting up Nest Boxes, might like to check out my rural location.

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#1 From my roof looking West!

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#2 From my roof looking North!

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#3 From my roof looking East!

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#4 From my roof looking South!

This is the view my young Swifts had from their nest box, as they were preparing to take their first flight.

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You will see from this photo that there are two stables directly in front of my Swift Nest Boxes.
However, to the right you will note that they have an escape route, right down to ground level, with our one acre paddock & wildlife garden beyond. 

The nearest town is five miles to the North, which is the direction my Swifts flew in, most times they left our garden, so I assume they spent a lot of their time hawking insects with the town Swifts there.

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360 degree Video footage!

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29th July 2018 - my last young Swift left the nest box today.

On the 29th of July my last young Swift took its first flight.

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I'm certainly going to miss having these little faces looking out at me each day.

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It was fun watching him stretch his mouth more often today, no doubt getting ready to catch his very own first flying insect.

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I know the adults returned regularly all day to feed this last chick, at least until 3pm.
Then I know it fledged between 3pm & 6pm.

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I was fairly certain it was going to leave today & follow its sibling or siblings, but it was just my luck that I watched it from 8am until 3pm, then I had to leave & when I came home again, it had gone.

Having said that I am, of course, absolutely delighted that my very first pair of Swifts successfully reared their first brood.

It's been a 3 year wait to get to this point but I was never in a hurry & now I have the thought that they will surely return next year to hopefully repeat this initial success & with a little luck their success might rub off & others might join them here, in my north Antrim garden.

I'm certainly going to miss my daily fix of watching the adults returning to & from the nest box.

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I wish my first Swift family a very safe trip home to Africa & if I'm spared, I'll certainly be eagerly waiting for them to return in 2019.

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Short Video clips taken in my garden today - 29th July 2018

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Swifts in flight, in open countryside & over a town.

On Thursday 26th July 2018, with Swifts about to head home to Africa I felt I had to capture them in flight just one more time, so chose two locations near my home here in north Antrim.

It is wonderful to watch & hear them screaming around Dervock Church Tower, in clear blue skies over open countryside, but it is also simply awe inspiring to see them zipping around buildings, in amongst a tangle of wires & TV aerials at speed, over the town of Ballymoney, in the fading light.

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Sad to think that they will soon be gone again, but I'm just thankful that they do visit each year.

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27th July - last day I saw 2 young Swifts.

The 27th July was the last day I saw 2 Swifts in the nest box.

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Adults were still feeding them regularly.

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On one occasion, as one of the adults emerged, it seemed to catch a toe or primary feather on the lip of the box, but it soon righted itself.

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Before leaving, the adult always checks that the coast is clear.

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I always enjoy seeing a close up of this wee beauty.

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In slow-mo it always looks harder for them to get out than go in.

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Legs must be very busy behind the scenes.

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In slow-mo they look rather vulnerable at this point, but of course this all happens very quickly.

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As well as gravity, they use their feet to push away from the box.

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At this point I knew that something was not quite right.

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Now it looked like a foot or feather was caught, holding it back.

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Upside down now, but thankfully it manages to wriggle free.

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Gravity lends a helping hand again.

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... & off she goes.

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Swift activity in my north Antrim garden on 27th July 2018.

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27th July - showing exit clearance from 4 metre box.

Short video clips showing that even when a nest box is only about 4 metres high, Swifts still have at least 3 to 4 feet of clearance above the ground, when leaving.

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26th July & my youngsters are still here.

I still have little faces looking out at me.

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My Nest Boxes in the evening light.

Swift activity in my north Antrim garden - 25th July 2018

Wonderful to see two healthy chicks still in the nest box.

I wonder if there's a third one in behind them.

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Today,  I got a few short clips of the adults flying in towards & leaving the nest box.
I also took a couple of clips of the youngsters looking out of the nest box entrance, an activity which they seem to spend most of their day enjoying.

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VIDEO! 

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This wonderful adult bird's job will soon be done & it'll not be long before it's heading South for the Winter.
Amazing to think it won't land until it returns to this box ( hopefully ) next year.

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Slow-Mo Swift footage makes them sound like Monkeys!

I was delighted to get confirmation today,

that I have at least TWO young Swifts in my first nest.

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Earlier in the morning I could only see one.

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With these boxes having been adapted to cope with the extra heat, being on a South facing wall,
I was interested to see this one, tongue out & gasping in the heat, around the middle of the day.
However, they've already come through the hottest spell of weather we've had since 1976,
so I think they'll be fine.

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Next, I got a few photos of an adult leaving the nest box.

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I then set about getting some video footage of adults entering & leaving the nest box.
This compilation of clips includes each clip twice, with the 2nd clip slowed down by 50%.
It's fascinating to hear their scream which, when slowed down, sounds more like a screech
from a monkey. 

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Video

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Although the recommended minimum height to set boxes for Swifts is 5 metres,
I put these as high as I could, while tucking them all under the soffit board, to shade them from at least some of the heat from the sun.
It's interesting then to note that this first pair chose the 2nd lowest box, despite none of the other boxes being occupied.
An important factor, I believe, in siting boxes is to make sure they have a long, clear & flight path
directly in front of the boxes. This photo shows the clear run my Swifts have, from the boxes out
past the stables & on out over our paddock.

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