Roofing

Heritage Roofing
Are You Feeling the Summer Love?
Dr Chiara Ceci, The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB)
Image: Alan Georgy
Can UK roofing and swifts be the best of friends or are
these archetypal summer birds a costly nuisance to
roofers and their clients? One of the main concerns,
when it comes to birds nesting in or around roofs, is that
people worry about the mess they might make, but with
swifts there are no such problems; they are probably the
cleanest of birds, stay only 12 weeks each year and are
very helpful in getting rid of mosquitoes and other flying
insects.
“Swifts are the best tenants you could hope for and if you
are lucky enough to have them nesting near you, under a
loose roof tile or under the roof’s eaves, you should feel
privileged to share your building with these amazing
birds,” says Rebecca Pitman, RSPB Swift Cities Project
Officer.
“Swifts are the quintessential sign of summer. There’s
nothing like seeing and hearing them rocket over rooftops
on a summer’s evening. They are charismatic, enigmatic
and one of the fastest flying birds in the world.
“Swifts are only in the UK for three months of the year,
from April to August, and make practically no mess
where they nest, so they are the ideal tenants to have
nesting in your roof. In fact, most people don’t even
realise the swifts are there – the perfect houseguest!”
Rebecca adds.
Despite being low maintenance, swifts are facing an accommodation crisis, and
the RSPB is appealing for help from roofers for these intriguing birds over the
summer. When they arrive back in the UK they return to the exact same location
year after year. Swifts like to nest in the roofs of old buildings, but renovation,
insulation and development often destroy suitable sites. Rebecca explains:
“Swifts have declined by an alarming 38% since 1995 and are now an amberlisted
species on the list of Birds of Conservation Concern.
“We don’t know the exact causes of their decline - it could be a variety of issues
along their migration routes, including loss of insect food availability or climate
change - but the RSPB believes loss of nest sites in the UK is at least partly
responsible.”
Swifts could become extinct as a breeding species in the UK if we don’t all do
something about their plight.
Because the decline of swifts is caused by the disappearance of nesting sites,
roofers and builders could be the best friends of these beautiful and precious
birds.
Edward Mayer, a swift and building expert, founded Swift Conservation and
provides training and advice on the conservation of swifts and the enhancement
and support of urban biodiversity. “If well-built and installed, the boxes need no
maintenance, nor do they ever need to be cleaned out, as swifts are probably the
cleanest of birds, making minimal nests that mostly degrade and disappear over
winter.”
It is easy to help swifts without causing any adverse effects and without
compromising the building. All that is needed is a box or a hole, with suitably
t
Page 24 Roofing Today
Enquiry 42