LISBELLAW is taking flight in the effort to boost local biodiversity.
The village is set to become a haven for swifts, thanks to a new initiative that sees specially designed swift boxes installed in the area.
When Lisbellaw Area Initiative was formed a year and a half ago, one of their goals as part of their community development plan was to increase and build on biodiversity where possible.
With swifts constantly being on the news and knowing that their numbers were in freefall they decided they would need to do something locally to help, there the idea was born.
“Lisbellaw used to be home to nearly 100 swifts, locally known as squealers, our aim in to provide new homes for the acrobatic bird, to help increase their numbers and hopefully raise awareness along the way,” a spokesperson from Lisbellaw Area Initiative told the ‘Herald.
“We partnered with Lisbellaw Church of Ireland, who were overly supportive of the idea and located them pretty discreetly in the church tower, where the swifts have now already only weeks later, taken interest.”
The group would love to have the community learn more about the birds from Swifts NI.
“For older generations to tell their young about what they remember of the bird and most of all, help provide new nesting sites or not to close up current sites,” they added.
Swifts are one of the most magnificent birds you will see here over the summer, this is their home as this is where they are born, but come they end of summer, at 70 mph they leave Fermanagh for warmer lands some making it as far as Mozambique.
Sadly their journey is met with newer threats that we can’t stop from here, but what we can do, is show all these birds, swifts, swallows, sand and house martins some compassion, as they live with us and if we don’t, then sadly they too will be gone.
“We at LAI would like to celebrate Lisbellaw Church of Ireland and their commitment to the environment, as they are the first known church of any denomination to establish new homes for these birds where there were none before and their hard would should be commended as well as all the work done by the people involved to make a small idea turn into a huge achievement.”