White-rumped Swift vs African Palm Swift
Apus caffer compared with Cypsiurus parvus
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Attribute | White-rumped Swift | African Palm Swift |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Apus caffer | Cypsiurus parvus |
| Order | Caprimulgiformes | Caprimulgiformes |
| Family | Apodidae | Apodidae |
| Conservation Status | Least Concern | Least Concern |
| Length | — | — |
| Wingspan | 29.0 cm (11.4 in) | 27.2 cm (10.7 in) |
| Weight | 23.0 g (0.81 oz) | 14.38 g (0.51 oz) |
| Diet | Aerial insectivore taking small flying insects and spiders; may forage at great heights following thermal … | Exclusively aerial diet; consumes tiny flying insects and spiders, sometimes following insect swarms for km. |
| Clutch Size | 1-3 | 1-3 |
| Population Trend | — | — |
Habitat Comparison
Shared Habitats
White-rumped Swift only
None
African Palm Swift only
Song & Call Comparison
White-rumped Swift
Deep, guttural churring with resonant buzzing quality; prolonged low-frequency trill vibrating persistently through dense foliage.
African Palm Swift
Deep, hollow churring trill with resonant bass quality; prolonged vibrating call audible at significant range in open woodland.
Geographic Range & Migration
White-rumped Swift
Breeds in southern Europe and North Africa east to Central Asia. Migratory; winters in sub-Saharan Africa from Senegal south to South Africa.
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.
Conservation Status
White-rumped Swift
African Palm Swift
How to Tell Them Apart
White-rumped Swift
Dark sooty-brown; narrow elongated white rump patch; white throat; underparts dark; forked tail; African species; narrower and more elongated white rump than Little Swift; deeply forked tail unlike the square …
African Palm Swift
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.
About These Birds
White-rumped Swift
A small swift (14 cm) found across sub-Saharan Africa and the Iberian Peninsula. Dark plumage with a white rump and throat patch. Aerial insectivore. Famously uses the mud nests of other swallows and martins, adding its own feather and saliva lining. A brood parasite of nest architecture.
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.