Valuable against mosquitoes, swifts have 22 new nest boxes in Auch thanks to young people from IME La Convention

“They learned to drill, mill, screw and saw,” reports Boris Brandt. For the second year in a row, the Medical-Educational Institute (IME) La Convention d’Auch has produced bird nesting boxes as an annual project.

This Tuesday, June 25, the 22 swift nest boxes were presented in the presence of the LPO and Henri Chavarot, responsible for sustainable development at Auch town hall. Half of them are already installed under the roof of the Halle aux Herbes in the city center.

This initiative is the result of coordination work between the IME and the town hall. A collaboration whose objective is to stem the decline in the bird population, protect biodiversity and ensure public health.

Why swifts?

Swifts are paradoxically known to be a species… which never lands: “Morphologically, they are a small body with very large wings and very small legs. They only land for a few days or weeks per year. They eat, sleep and migrate while flying. When they sleep, they rest one part of their brain and fly with the other,” explains Anaïs Toison, volunteer at the Bird Protection League.

In general, swifts mainly land to breed. It is to encourage this reproduction that the nest boxes were installed. Fond of small crevices in stones, this species is located in towns thanks to the presence of old buildings. Like swallows, they are valuable predators for regulating the mosquito population.

Previously, the IME Convention had already set up bat nest boxes. This year, it’s the turn of the swifts. Next year, discussions are already underway around three nest boxes for barn owls.