Masters of the Sky

Masters of the Sky Words and Pictures by William Bowell

I love May. It sees the return of one our best birds to our big skies. They usually give themselves away by their screams, which aren’t terrifying in nature; more a cry of ‘I’m home!’, after a long migration from Africa and the chance to land for the first time since the last time they were here, some nine months earlier.

Of course! You guessed it! I’m talking about the Swift. Swift by name and Swift in flight. These special birds eat, sleep and even (kids cover your eyes!) do it on the wing! They only land at nest sites, which in this country is mostly gaps in a roof or attic. Just let that sink in. As the Fast Show (kids – ask your parents) would say, ‘Aren’t birds brilliant?’

‘What about when the weather is bad?’, I hear you cry, ‘Surely, they land then?’. Nope! These birds will think nothing of a short trip, a hundred miles away, to escape a storm. They may even fly over to the continent, to escape getting wet! Swift

Their high-speed chases between the chimney pots of Deeping are something I always look forward to each spring, and I mourn when they leave in August. They are one of our latest arrivals back from Africa, where they winter and are one of the earliest to head back south in autumn. In my opinion, dear reader, they just don’t stay long enough! The foot soldiers will have already been in for a few weeks or maybe a month; the hirundine family of Swallow, House Martin and Sand Martin. These are similarly at home high in the sky but roost each evening down here, like normal birds do. Swifts and hirundines are true aerial masters and to see them in their flocks over Deeping Lakes after a spring storm is sensational!

With such agility, you might be forgiven in thinking they don’t have any aerial predators. Well, to catch a master of the sky, you need to be a fellow expert and one bird is certainly that. The Hobby is a small falcon with rusty coloured trousers, which also winters in Africa and mostly eats insects – which they mostly consume on the wing, fact fans. (Are you paying attention at the back? This is useful pub quiz knowledge!)

The Hobby also hunts Swifts and hirundines as well though, and will work in pairs, in hot pursuit of their fast-flying prey. Most of the time the Hobby won’t be successful but nevertheless these high-speed chases are spectacular, as both predator and prey twist and weave through the air.

Of course, if we are going to mention Hobby when talking about masters of the sky, we really ought to name check the fastest of them all. The mighty Peregrine! Peregrines are famed for being the fastest animal on earth. The true top speed of a Peregrine is probably unknown but has been recorded at over 240mph when in stoop, chasing prey.

They fly at great height and, with their amazing eyesight, they pick up their prey and stoop, very, very fast. Being hit at such a speed, I guess, the prey won’t even know it’s been hit! The Peregrine is a true wonder of nature and something we can enjoy very close to home, as it breeds very close to the Deepings these days.

Let’s face it: any bird of prey is a master of the sky. Whether it be the Red Kite gliding over your house without a single wing beat or the Kestrel manically hovering over the roadside verge, they all use the winds and thermals to such graceful, effortless advantage – the mark of a true master.

Not all skilful sky veterans soar, swoop or hover. Some birds are masters in other ways. Take the arctic-breeding, Bar-tailed Godwit for example. To see them busily probing the mud on the estuary, sky master doesn’t spring to mind. But these are masters of migration and have been recorded, using radio trackers fitted to their backs, flying all the way from Alaska to New Zealand, non-stop!

Bar tailed Godwit

Peregrine And they aren’t the only ones. Most waders, such as the Godwits, are fantastic long-distance flyers, as are Swans, Geese and Ducks. Travelling unseen, at high altitude, against the elements and odds, bird migration is a real marvel.

Which brings me back to Swifts. On a warm, May evening, sit outside, maybe with a glass of something, and look up and marvel with wonder about how these birds travel from Britain to Africa, back to Britain again, without landing.

And then feel privileged that they’d rather land in Deeping!

Swifts have declined by 58% in Britain in the last 50 years. To see what you can do to help Swifts, visit Swift Conservation go to swift-conservation.org

Will works at Grasmere Farm in Deeping St James (with a butcher’s and deli in Market Gate, Market Deeping) but in his spare time enjoys wildlife watching locally and across the country. He is also a keen photographer. Many of his images can be found at http://justwildimages. blogspot.co.uk/ and photo cards can be found for sale at Market Gate Deli in Market Deeping.