Our single swift roosted alone in Box 3 as usual last night but the surprise came first thing this morning when it was joined by another. So we now have a pair in Box 3 again, hooray!

 Well…back to square one after the initial excitement. After having the second bird in Box 3 overnight and the pair seeming happy together, it disappeared the next day never to return. (Steve thinks it may have been taken by a hobby). We still have the single bird in Box 3 and it has been adding to the nest all this time so there’s quite a nice cup there now, ready for when… and if it gets a new partner.

Very pleased to say that this morning the single bird in Box 3 was joined by a mate, hooray! They seem very happy and have settled in nicely. 

 Just a quick update to say that there’s nothing to update yet. We still have the one swift roosting in Box 3 but to date no more have turned up and we have seen very few, in fact hardly any at all, in the area. But we live in hope and we are not alone, others have reported late swifts too. This has happened before - apparently in 1951 the main body of swifts didn’t arrive until between the 15th May and June 8th….

Hooray! Cley Swifts in action again this year, with the return of one of the pair from Box 3 yesterday evening, that is the 7th May. Last year the first one came back to Box 3 on the 4th May, (as did a single bird to Box 1), so 3 days late this year. 

Hopefully its mate will join it shortly, but looking back to last year their two partners apparently didn’t turn up and Box 1 and Box 3 eventually got together in Box 3 and left Box 1 empty. Then on 23rd May a third bird turned up and went into Box 1 and then on the morning of the 26th May a second bird joined it. 

Last year the pair in Box 1 laid eggs which we had to keep replacing in the nest but they were abandoned so no chicks...we think this pair were young birds. The pair in Box 3 didn’t lay at all, the first time since we started getting swifts that we haven’t had any youngsters. We hope we shall have better luck with them this year. Here is the single bird in Box 3 last night: