Cook's Swift vs African Palm Swift

Apus cooki مقارنةً بـ Cypsiurus parvus

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Side-by-Side Comparison

السمة Cook's Swift African Palm Swift
الاسم العلمي Apus cooki Cypsiurus parvus
الرتبة Caprimulgiformes Caprimulgiformes
الفصيلة Apodidae Apodidae
حالة الحفاظ Not Evaluated Least Concern
الطول
طول الجناح 27,2 cm (10.7 in)
الوزن 42,949999999999996 g (1.52 oz) 14,38 g (0.51 oz)
النظام الغذائي Catches aerial plankton — tiny midges, gnats, and ballooning spiders — continuously during soaring flight. Exclusively aerial diet; consumes tiny flying insects and spiders, sometimes following insect swarms for km.
عدد البيض في الوضع -- 1-3
Population Trend
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Habitat Comparison

الموائل المشتركة

بلا

Cook's Swift only

بلا

African Palm Swift only

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Song & Call Comparison

Cook's Swift

الغناء

Bright, flute-like series of liquid notes; clear melodic phrase ascending slightly then resolving on a sustained pure tone.

African Palm Swift

الغناء

Deep, hollow churring trill with resonant bass quality; prolonged vibrating call audible at significant range in open woodland.

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Geographic Range & Migration

Cook's Swift

Found from southern Thailand through the Thai-Malay Peninsula to Sumatra, Borneo, and adjacent islands. Resident in lowland forest.

African Palm Swift

Found across sub-Saharan Africa from Senegal east to Somalia and south to South Africa. Common in open areas near palms; nests in palm leaves.

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حالة الحفاظ

Not Evaluated

Cook's Swift

Least Concern

African Palm Swift

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How to Tell Them Apart

Cook's Swift

الريش

Dark sooty-brown upperparts; white rump patch; pale white throat; dark underparts; deeply forked tail; recently split taxon from Pacific Swift complex; plumage essentially identical to close relatives, distinguished primarily by …

African Palm Swift

الريش

Slender and long-tailed; uniformly pale greyish-brown overall; underparts paler grey-buff; long deeply forked tail; pale uniform appearance with no contrasting markings; widespread African palm-nesting swift with distinctive slender silhouette.

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About These Birds

Cook's Swift

A medium-sized swift (16-17 cm) found in montane forests from the Malay Peninsula through Southeast Asia to southern China. Dark plumage with a pale throat. Aerial insectivore. Named after Frederick Cook. Until recently considered conspecific with Pacific Swift.

African Palm Swift

A slender swift (15-17 cm) with long, narrow wings and a deeply forked tail. Dark brown plumage. Found across sub-Saharan Africa in savanna and open woodland, closely associated with palm trees. Aerial insectivore. One of Africa's most abundant swift species.

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