Skip to content

Occupancy

The chart below illustrates the patterns of occupancy growth on each elevation since 2011

Explanation  

(click + to expand)

This chart can be read alongside the breeding pairs and fledgling chart. It illustrates how the colony has grown

  • As each new box of 10 compartments is added to existing elevations
  • As each year passes
  • How vacant boxes in different positions are occupied first; for example top left 2 north, 12 east, 22 south, 32 west have been occupied first on all new boxes.
  • Preferences seem to be for north, then east, then west and south elevations
  • How entrances adjacent to the wall edge are more popular than the two in the central area for instance 6 and 9.

 

Each year we will update the chart.

  • Chamber 2 is the original pair, whilst we still need to identify individual birds, this is the first nesting to be occupied in each new season. In 2024 the pair had successfully raised 33 fledgling swifts 
  • The pattern of novice pairs prospecting for a nest site, taking up residence but not breeding that year, is represented by yellow Notice how in the following year that chamber is often represented by green shading – a successful breeding season
  • A failed breeding pair is represented by red shading – there are several possibilities for failure. Infertile eggs, eggs ejected from the concave (nesting platform), starving young related to weather conditions, temperature, or loss of parent
  • Least popular elevations have chambers the have never been occupied

 

We are interested to receive any observations you have on this chart.

Occupancy and Breeding chart for swift nest boxes
in St Lukes Church tower Kinoulton – established 2011

If you wish to view this spread sheet on “Google Sheets”  Click here

Before any work began, we held detailed discussions with the church stewards and members of the Parochial Church Council. It was agreed that no drilling would take place into the tower walls and that no more than one third of the louvred openings would be covered.

Swifts characteristically fly to the highest available entrance when prospecting for breeding sites, which led us to favour the upper third of the louvres, including the crescent-shaped opening. Several designs were drafted before we settled on a single large wooden structure incorporating ten compartments.

Accurate alignment of the entrances with the gaps between the louvres was achieved using a full-size brown paper template. On a bright day the paper was held against the louvre opening and all relevant reference points marked. These were then transferred into a working drawing, with additional detail added in stages. The final form of the structure was determined by the existing church fabric and the dimensions and design of the louvres themselves.

We agreed standard internal dimensions for each compartment: 8 inches wide, 8 inches high and a minimum length of 10 inches. Although swifts are known to breed successfully in more confined spaces, these dimensions were chosen to allow room for movement, wing exercise and adequate air circulation within an enclosed structure. Each entrance measures 28 mm high by 45 mm wide, a size that prevents occupation by starlings before the swifts return. The chambers are left open
throughout the winter and temporarily blocked in mid-February, then reopened when the first swifts are reported arriving in England, usually in mid-April.

From the outset, we also had to consider access constraints within the tower and the small size of the access hatch. It became clear that the structure would need to be dismantled and effectively ‘flat-packed’ once constructed. All components were carried up the tower individually and then carefully reassembled in situ.

We were fortunate that the area above the bells provided a solid boarded floor and a safe working environment. Our principal health and safety concern was the large church clock bell in the corner, which tolled every hour. Ear defenders were essential, as was setting a mobile phone alarm with a five-minute warning — a routine that quickly became second nature.

Before any work began, we held detailed discussions with the church stewards and members of the Parochial Church Council. It was agreed that no drilling would take place into the tower walls and that no more than one third of the louvred openings would be covered.

Swifts characteristically fly to the highest available entrance when prospecting for breeding sites, which led us to favour the upper third of the louvres, including the crescent-shaped opening. Several designs were drafted before we settled on a single large wooden structure incorporating ten compartments.

Accurate alignment of the entrances with the gaps between the louvres was achieved using a full-size brown paper template. On a bright day the paper was held against the louvre opening and all relevant reference points marked. These were then transferred into a working drawing, with additional detail added in stages. The final form of the structure was determined by the existing church fabric and the dimensions and design of the louvres themselves.

We agreed standard internal dimensions for each compartment: 8 inches wide, 8 inches high and a minimum length of 10 inches. Although swifts are known to breed successfully in more confined spaces, these dimensions were chosen to allow room for movement, wing exercise and adequate air circulation within an enclosed structure. Each entrance measures 28 mm high by 45 mm wide, a size that prevents occupation by starlings before the swifts return. The chambers are left open
throughout the winter and temporarily blocked in mid-February, then reopened when the first swifts are reported arriving in England, usually in mid-April.

From the outset, we also had to consider access constraints within the tower and the small size of the access hatch. It became clear that the structure would need to be dismantled and effectively ‘flat-packed’ once constructed. All components were carried up the tower individually and then carefully reassembled in situ.

We were fortunate that the area above the bells provided a solid boarded floor and a safe working environment. Our principal health and safety concern was the large church clock bell in the corner, which tolled every hour. Ear defenders were essential, as was setting a mobile phone alarm with a five-minute warning — a routine that quickly became second nature.