Municipal Strategy to Support Birds Nesting in Buildings

The municipal strategy to support birds and bats nesting in buildings has been published! The development of this strategy was made possible by an extensive survey of breeding sites, which was carried out by volunteers and specialists during the spring of 2025.

This strategy outlines three levels of measures:

1. Protecting Existing Breeding Sites

   When work is planned on the roofs and facades of existing buildings, modifications may be necessary to preserve the nests or roosts of species that breed there. Prior authorization from the General Directorate of the Environment of the Canton of Vaud is required.

2. Strengthening existing populations

   This second measure aims to strengthen swallow and swift populations in neighborhoods where these species are already present by installing nesting boxes on nearby buildings. For bats, the goal is to reduce light pollution around their hunting grounds, specifically along areas with shrubs and trees.

3. Creating New Habitats

   The third measure will focus on creating new habitats. For swallows and swifts, new nesting boxes will be installed in suitable neighborhoods where these species have not yet established themselves, as opportunities arise. For bats, the goal will be to reconnect hunting territories—where possible—that were previously disconnected by creating new areas with shrubs or trees.

We’ll need your help to implement this strategy! More information will be provided via this platform. To make sure you don’t miss anything, click the “Follow” bell icon at the top of the home page.

For more information, see the document outlining the strategy.