run by the Ipswich RSPB Local Group.
House sparrows and swifts are two familiar, urban breeding species to be found in Ipswich whose numbers are in serious decline. House sparrows have declined by an astounding 66% since 1969 and swifts are declining by around 3% per annum.
Swifts spend the winter in Africa, being only present in the UK for to breed from May till early August. If nothing is done to reverse their rate of decline they could go extinct as a UK breeding species by 2050.
House sparrows are a highly sedentary and colonial species that has been associated with man for at least 10,000 years. Most house sparrows do not venture further than 100m from the colony. This means that once a local colony dies out it, it is highly likely never to be re-established.
The ultimate aim of this project is to improve the conservation status of these species, so that these declines can be halted and where possible reversed.
- Conduct surveys, (commencing April 2016), to discover where the birds are and estimate how many. In the case of sparrows we will also be seeking to record the presence of important urban habitat features, such as bushes, shrubs, allotments etc. so as to be able to help to preserve or enhance these where possible. For swifts we are working in collaboration together with the Save our Suffolk Swifts project and using the on-line survey hosted by Suffolk Biological Records Centre.
- In collaboration with Ipswich Wildlife Group, Greenways Countryside Project we will be working to raise awareness about these species among local residents and businesses. We will achieve this by means of a range of public engagement events and promotion and publicity through local media.
- Together with IWG and Greenways and in conjunction with a variety of Wildlife Homes and other events we will be promoting the supply and installation of affordable house sparrow and swift nest boxes, to residents across the town and surrounding area.
- To use the output data from the surveys and locations of installed nest boxes and identified significant habitat features to update the Ipswich Wildlife Network, a landscape scale plan, hosted by Greenways and Ipswich Borough Council, designed to help connect existing wildlife habitats and improve biodiversity resistance throughout Ipswich.
Details on the Group website here
