Bird Notes columnist Julian Hughes of
RSPB Cymru reveals what birds have been spotted in the past week and lists a
massive 20 upcoming wildlife events
Andrew Forgrave Rural Affairs Editor
10:07, 28 MAY 2019
I spent Bank Holiday weekend at the Hay
Festival, talking to people about nature. Driving home along the borderlands and
the North Wales coast, how many Swallows did I see? Four.
Four Swallows in 133 miles at the end
of May.
My own experience reflected one of the
most common questions from festivalgoers: “Where have all the
Swallows/Swifts/House Martins gone?”
But how representative was my journey
or the observations of others? BirdTrack, the online database holding lists
collected by thousands of birdwatchers, provides some clues.
Compared to the historic average, there
were 21% fewer records of Swallows and Swifts in Wales in May, and a whopping
30% fewer House Martins.
House Martins and Swallows are down
across Britain and Ireland, though the drop in Wales is far greater.
Swift sightings in Wales are one-third
down on last year, but on a par with summer 2017.
It’s difficult to know why, but both
weather and food supply play a part. All these birds depend on flying insects,
and most surveys of invertebrates point to huge declines across Europe.
