My beloved swallows, talisman of my summer happiness, are busy nesting in the stables. Their blue-black shine glistens as they acrobatically insect-catch, collect mud and chatter from the beams.
This year, I’m just as obsessed with the return of another migrant species – swifts. It is the fault of the author and campaigner Hannah Bourne-Taylor. We’ve spoken recently about her new book, Nature Needs You: The Fight to Save Our Swifts, detailing her battle to have a single swift brick made mandatory in every new-build home. Swifts are totally reliant on our buildings for their (diminishing) nest spaces.
