ARCHIVED - Swifts fall from their nests disorientated by the heat in Murcia
200 swifts are receiving treatment at the El Valle wildlife recovery centre
It is believed that the recent high temperatures in Murcia are responsible for the large numbers of injured swifts which have been delivered to the animal rescue and recovery centre in the regional park of El Valle over the last two weeks, with the total reported to have reached over 200.
Most of the birds belonging to the Apus apus (common swift) and Apus pallidus (pallid swift) species are young chicks not yet able to fly, and it is thought they have attempted to leave their nests before time due to the uncomfortably high temperatures. The heat accumulates in the roof overhangs of buildings where swifts build their nests, and as a result members of the public have found defenceless young birds on the ground below.
At the recovery centre in El Valle most of the chicks are making good progress and will be released into the wild once they are fully grown. The advice given to members of the public who find injured birds is to refrain from attempting to look after them themselves, and to deliver them to the centre in a cardboard box as quickly as possible without giving them food or water.
On arrival each bird is examined before treatment, which can last for up to four weeks, and is then ringed before being released so that it can be monitored during migration: the swift spends the winter in southern Africa, travelling vast distances despite measuring only 16 centimetres or so in length.
Due to their anatomy swifts are unable to take flight from the ground – for that reason they are rarely found there – and once they fall their chances of survival are therefore slender. In addition, their diet consists exclusively of insects – each bird can consume thousands of mosquitos in a single day, providing a great service to humans! – and when they can’t fly, they can’t feed.