Nest boxes to ease swifts’ nesting in the Faculty of Biology
The common swift (Apus apus) is an insectivorous and migratory bird, which is specially tied to urban areas, and which was usually found in the attic of old houses or emblematic buildings. In big cities, the swift got used to build its nest inside aeration zones of buildings but the current design of modern houses ended up with these urban habitats and therefore, the population of birds has reduced.
“The swift is a rupiculous species with an extreme adaptation to flying. It lives in colonies and occupies nest boxes easily. It is a known bird among people –many people relate this bird to the beginning of spring- and is a bird of interest in the field of science”, says Professor José Domingo Rodríguez-Teijeiro, from the Department of Evolutionary Biology, Ecology and Environmental Sciences, and the Biodiversity Research Institute of the UB (IRBio).
This is why the Faculty of Biology of the UB, IRBio-UB and the association Galanthus are collaborating in a project to put nest boxes for the common swift in the Prevosti Building, an initiative to help the nesting of these birds during their breeding season in April.
