Haven’t seen any over the house for over a week - think the Ilminster ones have departed.
Still a couple of active Swifts nests which I am able to watch from our Garden.
This evening 21 Swifts hung around for a bit before continuing on their migration.
Thankfully ‘our’ Swifts didn’t go with them!
Swift numbers continuing to drop off, just 13 remaining over our Coleford garden this evening. There are still some active nests within 30 yards of our house, both up and down the road.
C30;Swifts plus a similar number of Swallows and a handful of House Martins low over Butleigh cricket pitch and nearly fields this afternoon. A number of Jackdaws and Herring Gulls circling above, so perhaps a flying ant emergence?
25 Swifts ‘enjoying’ the Langport airspace in the evening of 18 July.
An ‘average’ count for here. Less than last year. Warm weather and plenty of insects to feed on over the River Parrett and surrounding area.
Hope that good numbers of young fledge. Must be very hot inside their nests this summer!
Group of 15 over Axbridge town centre three days ago. We put a 6-unit swift box in Catcott church last winter: not used this year but here’s hoping…
Must be flight school time - screaming squadron of 20+ over our house in Ilminster this morning.
Looks like a good year for them.
Roy, a survey by Taunton swift group on Monday found 20 occupied swift boxes at the South Street colony, so could be that all adults were out in that flock.
23-June-2026
4 Swifts screaming round our house in Street this evening and 2 entered the regular nest cavity under our front gable, one followed by the other at 20:15 hrs. Neither had re-appeared by 20-50 hrs when we went inside to watch a mostly poor football match!
If they are breeding, then hopefully in this extreme hot weather we wont see a shrivelled dead youngster beneath the nest like we did in late-June-2018.
A “screaming” flock of c40 feeding over my Wellington garden this afternoon , largest number seen so far this year - possibly weather related ?
Lovely evening outside with , potentially, 20+ Swift overhead.
Hope it’s not just me that takes great joy in seeing reasonable numbers.
A single swift over Wellington this evening near normal colony
First ‘screamers’ back in Rowbarton, Taunton. 4 seen together this morning, 30 April, a day earlier than last year.
First of the year for me with 2 over the cricket pitch in Butleigh yesterday, then at a regular nesting hole close by.
4 Swifts - presumed our front & back regular breeders - circling around our house in Street on 25-April, but after a few mins they flew off & not seen since!