Renowned naturalist John Walters will be joined by carpenter Jerry Horn of Dawlish Swifts on Thursday March 14 at 7.30pm, at South Brent Village Hall.

Together, they will help you find out all about house martins, swifts and swallows in Devon and crucially, what we can all do to help these threatened birds thrive.

Organiser Hayden Gabriel says: “We’re thrilled that John Walters and Jerry Horn have very kindly agreed to come to South Brent to share their knowledge and experience.

“The evening will be a great way to find out more about these beautiful birds and the actions you can take to help them.”

Jerry has already been working with South Brent’s Dartside Explorer Scouts to make Swift nest boxes.

Swifts are pretty picky when it comes to choosing where to nest, but if you think you have a suitable site, you are encouraged to apply to have a nest box which could be yours for free, although donations are more than welcome to offset the considerable cost.”

The event is being organised by Sustainable South Brent, in collaboration with Brent Birders, and Devon Birds.

Proceeds will go to support the Swifts in South Brent Project and other SSB initiatives.

The house martin is a small bird with glossy blue-black upper parts and pure white under parts.

It has a distinctive white rump with a forked tail and white feathers covering its legs and toes. It spends much of its time in flight, collecting insects.

The swifts are a family of highly aerial birds. They are superficially similar to swallows, but are not closely related to any passerine species.

The swallows, martins, and saw-wings, or Hirundinidae are a family of songbirds found around the world on all continents, including occasionally in Antarctica.

Highly adapted to aerial feeding, they have a distinctive appearance.

The term “swallow” is used colloquially as a synonym for the barn swallow.

Tickets £10/£5/£0 via Eventbrite or the Hub in the Old School Community Centre, South Brent (SSB volunteers will be there every Mon, Wed and Fri. 9.30am-11am).