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Help us record swallow and swift nests! With the start of a new nesting season, the swallows are already in a hustle and bustle and soon it will be the swifts' turn.


Knowing and protecting the places where these birds nest is crucial for their conservation! So, for the second year running, the andorin is asking for everyone's co-operation in this national nest registration campaign.


This year the andorin has the collaboration of the Environment Division of the municipality of Caldas da Rainha, who are promoting the nest registration campaign through the "Here there is a Swallow" initiative.


If you too have a swallow's nest at home, know of a swallow colony or live near a castle or wall where you can see flocks of swifts, send us those records!


You can find the link to the form on the homepage of the andorin website!

  • Jan 25, 2024
  • 1 min read

Updated: Apr 19, 2024




All birds can have parasites, but birds that nest in colonies, such as many swallows and swifts, are more likely to live with this type of animal.


While some of these parasites are highly specialised in certain groups or even species of birds, others are generalists, such as Cimex hirundinis. This haematophagous insect parasitises more than 20 different species of birds, from swallows and swifts to lapwings, sparrows, starlings and woodpeckers.



A specimen of this species was discovered at the beginning of winter inside a residential building, in a room whose only window is located a few metres from a swallow's nest (Delichon urbicum). This record in Laborim de Baixo, Vila Nova de Gaia, confirms the literature on this parasite, which is known to hibernate in birds' nests and can sometimes enter houses.


This discovery by the Curator of Entomology at the Museum of Natural History and Science at the University of Porto, José Manuel Grosso-Silva, considerably extends the known distribution area of this species to the Iberian Peninsula.


Although parasites are common in birds, most of them pose no risk to human health. These animals are essential for biological diversity and the maintenance of natural ecosystems.

  • Jun 13, 2023
  • 1 min read

Updated: Jul 12, 2023


During the first month of the andorin campaign, more than 500 structures where swallows, martins and swifts nest were identified and in these structures exists more than 4500 nests! It is still a very small fraction of the nests and colonies we have in Portugal, but it is an important start and a huge responsibility!

We want to thank very much to everyone who was kind enough to register nests on our page but above all ask you to continue registering all the nests you find and help us spread this citizen-science initiative!

And have you helped a swallow today?


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