Portugal's largest swift colony is in danger
Edward Mayer
Hello everyone,
I hope you're all doing well.
The andorin project works to conserve martins, swallows and swifts in Portugal; one of our main activities has been identifying nesting sites through a citizen science campaign to record nesting colonies. Over the past three years, we have recorded nearly 1,000 nesting sites for swifts. The most iconic of these in the entire country is likely Trancoso Castle, where we estimate that around 500 pairs of common swifts nest.
It turns out that upon their arrival, the swifts were met with a terrifying sight: part of the castle was under restoration, and their nesting sites were being covered with cement. The work is the responsibility of the municipality.
Since then, andorin, together with other nongovernmental organizations, has been attempting to engage in dialogue with local authorities and administrators. Initially, a joint letter was signed by various NGOs and submitted to the municipality; subsequently, due to the lack of a response, legal action was taken by filing a complaint with the public prosecutor’s office with the aim of halting the construction work and restoring the situation to its previous state by reopening the birds’ nesting sites.
Although the construction work violates Portuguese and European law by failing to respect bird nesting sites, the permits were requested without taking the birds’ presence into account and were therefore granted. While the authorities delay implementing measures to protect the birds, restoration work on the castle wall is proceeding as quickly as possible to avoid a halt.
Having exhausted all avenues to draw attention to what is happening in our country—and even though the issue has been covered by various national newspapers and television channels—the construction work continues. That is why we are appealing to you to also report on what is happening, writing an article, news story, or social media post to show that more people care.
If you have any questions, we’re here to help, and if you post anything related to this, please share it with us by replying to this email so we can share it as well.
We hope we can count on your support!
Here are some news links (in Portuguese 🤷) and attached photos!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-8yVHlmuuUk
Best regards,
from the andorin team,
Vasco Flores Cruz
Louise at Bolton and Bury Swifts
Hi Edward & All,
If the Andorin group have a social media presence, sharing their posts would be the easiest way for many people to raise awareness, I cant see anything on their information to suggest this though. They may need a petition? If there isn’t one already, I’ve not found it…
Thanks for sharing this,
Louise
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Edward Mayer
Some pretty good news!
-------- Forwarded Message --------
| Subject: | Re: Portugal's largest swift colony is in danger |
|---|---|
| Date: | Wed, 20 May 2026 12:30:41 +0100 |
| From: | Katarzyna <kszc...@yahoo.co.uk> |
| To: | Edward Mayer <edward...@zen.co.uk> |
Dear Edward
On 10 May 2026, at 09:49, Edward Mayer <edward...@zen.co.uk> wrote:
Hello Kasia, Have you heard about this??? Best wishes to you and Piotr, Edward
-------- Forwarded Message --------
Subject: Fwd: Portugal's largest swift colony is in danger Date: Sun, 10 May 2026 08:21:25 +0200 From: Carolyn Knowlman <swiftsi...@gmail.com> To: Edward Mayer <edward...@zen.co.uk>
Hi Edward, Do you know anyone who can help ? Cx
Sent from my iPad
Begin forwarded message:
From: andorin <registo...@gmail.com>
Date: 10 May 2026 at 00:27:31 CEST
To: sosmar...@gmail.com, monumen...@gmail.com, in...@gierzwaluw.knnv.nl, in...@mauersegler.com, swiftconserv...@gmail.com, ma...@swift-conservation.org, actionf...@gmail.com
Subject: Portugal's largest swift colony is in danger
Hello everyone,
I hope you're all doing well.
The andorin project works to conserve martins, swallows and swifts in Portugal; one of our main activities has been identifying nesting sites through a citizen science campaign to record nesting colonies. Over the past three years, we have recorded nearly 1,000 nesting sites for swifts. The most iconic of these in the entire country is likely Trancoso Castle, where we estimate that around 500 pairs of common swifts nest.
It turns out that upon their arrival, the swifts were met with a terrifying sight: part of the castle was under restoration, and their nesting sites were being covered with cement. The work is the responsibility of the municipality.
Since then, andorin, together with other nongovernmental organizations, has been attempting to engage in dialogue with local authorities and administrators. Initially, a joint letter was signed by various NGOs and submitted to the municipality; subsequently, due to the lack of a response, legal action was taken by filing a complaint with the public prosecutor’s office with the aim of halting the construction work and restoring the situation to its previous state by reopening the birds’ nesting sites.
Although the construction work violates Portuguese and European law by failing to respect bird nesting sites, the permits were requested without taking the birds’ presence into account and were therefore granted. While the authorities delay implementing measures to protect the birds, restoration work on the castle wall is proceeding as quickly as possible to avoid a halt.
Having exhausted all avenues to draw attention to what is happening in our country—and even though the issue has been covered by various national newspapers and television channels—the construction work continues. That is why we are appealing to you to also report on what is happening, writing an article, news story, or social media post to show that more people care.
If you have any questions, we’re here to help, and if you post anything related to this, please share it with us by replying to this email so we can share it as well.
We hope we can count on your support!
Here are some news links (in Portuguese 🤷) and attached photos!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-8yVHlmuuUk
Best regards,
from the andorin team,
Vasco Flores Cruz
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