UK home owners urged to create insect-friendly habitats in their gardens to feed endangered birds

Home owners across Britain are being urged to install nest boxes and create garden habitats for insects in a bid to boost the numbers of swallows, swifts and martins across the UK.

The aim is to attract more migratory birds each summer after both swifts and house martins were recently added to the UK’s red list of threatened birds.

They have suffered a serious decline amid a significant drop in insect numbers, loss of habitat and extreme weather caused by climate change, experts say.

It is estimated that almost 60 per cent of UK swifts have disappeared over the last 25 years. 

The new plea for gardeners is a part of a joint initiative by the Wildlife Trusts and the Royal Horticultural Society.

Tips include making a bog garden, letting a patch of grass grow long and installing a swift box

In their new ‘wild about highflyers’ campaign, the charities are giving home owners tips on how to help swallows, swifts and martins, including creating a bog garden with plants such as marsh bedstraw and purple loosestrife to provide habitat for insects and nest-building material.

Just letting a patch of grass grow long provides vital habitat and food for insects, which the birds feed on, and other wildlife, the groups said.

Not only that, but householders can add a swift box to an existing house or include a swift brick – which builds nesting accommodation into walls below the eaves – in a new build property, to provide the birds with somewhere to rear their young.

Experts say swift boxes are best placed facing north/north-east to help regulate the internal temperature and situated at least 16 feet (5 metres) above ground.

Dr Rob Stoneman, director of landscape recovery at the Wildlife Trusts, said: ‘Swifts, swallows, and martins are some of our most iconic breeding birds.

‘Watching and hearing these creatures soar through the sky is an uplifting spectacle, and an experience that leaves you totally in awe of nature.

‘Sadly, these birds – like much of our wildlife – have suffered severe declines in recent decades due to habitat loss and plummeting insect numbers, which are affected by pollution, the impacts of development, and climate change.’

Wildlife campaigners are offering tips on how to help swallows, swifts (pictured) and martins, including creating a bog garden with plants such as marsh bedstraw and purple loosestrife to provide habitat for insects and nest-building material

The aim is to attract more migratory birds each summer after both swifts and house martins (pictured) were recently added to the UK’s red list of threatened birds

He added: ‘With a bit of diversity and structure, a garden can become a haven for all kinds of wildlife, providing nesting sites, shelter and food.

‘It’s all about being creative, ditching all chemicals, and letting things go a bit wild.’

Helen Bostock, senior wildlife specialist at the RHS, said: ‘Anyone lucky enough to share their homes with nesting swallows, swifts or house martins will understand how magical these birds are.’

However, she warned that the birds were vulnerable, with the numbers returning each summer dropping year on year.

‘The UK’s 30 million gardeners have an important part to play in helping revive their populations – from tailoring planting choices to include insect favourites and embracing bare patches for the benefit of nest building, people can make small-scale changes that will reap big rewards,’ the wildlife expert added.