Screams and streams
Screams and Streams is a community-led action research project which is asking the question: Is there a clear relationship between river health and common swift survival? It runs from April to July 2025.
The health of rivers across Wales and the UK as a whole is poor, and this affects the wildlife that depend on them. One such species is swifts, which often nest along floodplains and river systems and feed on insects. Swifts are in decline for many reasons, and this project will look at the role river health plays in that.
The research is being carried out by two community groups: Lab Dŵr Dyffryn Dyfi and the Biosphere Swifts Group in partnership with Biosffer Dyfi and funded by LPIP (Local Policy Innovation Partnerships).
Lab Dŵr Dyffryn Dyfi volunteers will be sampling water along the river from Llanymawddwy near its source to Borth, testing for temperature, pH, nitrates and other chemical and physical characteristics, as well as monitoring invertebrate life.
Volunteers from the Swifts group will be surveying swift breeding populations at each site, looking at feeding behaviour and monitoring the use of swift boxes.
We need your help!
This is a citizen science project, and help from the community is vital to its success. Relevant training will be offered to anyone who would like to take part, either by going out and testing streams with Lab Dŵr Dyffryn Dyfi or monitoring swifts anywhere in the Dyfi catchment (or both).
For more details contact our project officer Bryn Hall via the website contact form.
Use our Screams and Streams app to record your sightings and access our river data records. Find it here
Screams and Streams is part of the Rural Wales Local Policy and Innovation Partnership in which Aberystwyth University is a partner. It aims to support policy making that benefits rural communities, through engaging citizens in discussion and activities.