Church bells to ring out for swifts' return

A celebration is planned to "welcome back" swifts to Derby from their winter migration to southern Africa.

Bells will ring out at St Luke's Church on Monday and Derby Cathedral on Tuesday to mark their return and to "celebrate nature in communities".

Derby Nature Collective also wants to raise awareness of the declining swift population - which it said was mainly down to a loss of nesting sites - with the Bells for Birds event.

Kelly Herrick, from the group, said: "We can all really start to help the swift population come back to its former glory."

Swifts resemble the shape of a boomerang, with long and pointed wings carving arcs across the sky, making them recognisable from other birds.

They often fly around in large groups calling to each other with loud high-pitched screaming calls, said Derby Nature Collective.

Swifts mostly nest in cracks and crevices in residential properties and live almost their entire lives in flight - eating, drinking, sleeping, even mating on the wing.

They migrate thousands of miles every year, from sub-Saharan Africa back to the UK, relying on the same nesting sites generation after generation.

Derby Nature Collective said while the events were a celebration of the return of the swifts, they would also raise awareness of their plight.

The group said as old buildings were renovated or demolished, the tiny spaces the birds need to nest in vanished while modern buildings "often offer no alternatives".

Swift numbers are down 60% over the last 25 years, it added.

Ms Herrick said: "It is a dramatic drop but we have seen other species start to recover and we're really optimistic.

"We need to recognise and protect any resting sites because it's now becoming tricky for the swifts and we also need to protect those insect friendly spaces so that might be rewilding projects and letting grass grow a bit longer in warms months... supporting their food source.

"By stepping in and raising awareness in order to protect them and to educate others while celebrating them which we're doing here - we can all really start to help the swift population come back to its former glory."

The first event takes place at St Luke's Church on Parliament Street between 09:30 and 10:20 BST on Monday and the second event at Derby Cathedral on Tuesday will go on from 19:00 until 21:00.

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