Wild Things: This book will appeal to all nature lovers

Wild Things: Join the fight for nature

They left in August. The group of swifts visible from my house deserted Sidcup skies on August 10 - three days later than last year. I spotted the first on May 7 after days eagerly scanning for a pathfinder. This was a couple of days later than the first incomer in 2023. My highest house window count has been 13 at one time for both years. In both years one or two migrating stragglers flew past several days after the main body disappeared. I enjoyed a special treat in late May when I glanced out of a window and glimpsed two swifts mating on the wing. A first for me. Each year I wonder sadly whether this will be the final time I see these flight-masters from my home. Because they are in deep trouble, red-listed as birds of gravest concern. Numbers are crashing with insect prey dwindling worldwide, home refurbishment destroying roof-cavity nest sites and predation on annual migration to and from Africa.

Wild Things: 'Killer' squirrels, egg thieves and more

Swift declines are among the topics discussed in Mark Cocker's new book One Midsummer Day. Mark has been captivated by swifts his whole life. As he watches them overhead one midsummer's day he starts to explore the deep interconnections of the whole biosphere. He examines the problems, conservation efforts and future for swifts worldwide in a wide-ranging nature investigation that stirs emotions within the reader. He discovers poisons used indiscriminately by farmers for insect control have contributed enormously to swifts' population crash and finds more unusual hazards too. Like the rare swift that turned up in the north of England, delighting birdwatchers with its aerial antics. Hundreds were still watching one day when the bird turned and flew straight into the mincing machine of wind turbine blades. This book is a wide-ranging celebration of all life on Earth with particular emphasis on the swift. It will be enjoyed by all nature lovers.