Torrevieja Council has installed 30 new nesting boxes for swifts as part of its Urban Biodiversity Plan. Fifteen have been placed on the side of the old Town Hall and another 15 at Inmaculada Concepción Primary School. The aim is to support nesting by common swifts (Apus apus) and pallid swifts (Apus pallidus), both key insect-eating species.

The councillor for Pest Control, Diana Box Alonso, has said the birds play an important role in urban areas by naturally reducing flying insects, particularly mosquitoes. Their presence is seen as a sustainable complement to traditional pest control measures.

During February, the council has also installed 20 nesting boxes for house martins (Delichon urbicum) at Torrevieja University Hospital, in collaboration with the hospital. The nests have been placed on the façade facing the Torrevieja lagoon, where protected colonies were identified last year. The migratory birds travel around 10,000 km each year and return between March and September, when mosquito activity is highest.

The initiative forms part of the municipal Urban Pest Control Service contract, managed by CTL. The council says artificial nests help offset the loss of traditional nesting spaces due to building modernisation, while strengthening biodiversity as a sustainable tool in pest prevention.