Cave Swiftlet vs Great Dusky Swift
Collocalia linchi compared with Cypseloides senex
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Attribute | Cave Swiftlet | Great Dusky Swift |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Collocalia linchi | Cypseloides senex |
| Order | Caprimulgiformes | Caprimulgiformes |
| Family | Apodidae | Apodidae |
| Conservation Status | Least Concern | Least Concern |
| Length | — | — |
| Wingspan | 18.7 cm (7.4 in) | 33.8 cm (13.3 in) |
| Weight | 6.05 g (0.21 oz) | 83.0 g (2.93 oz) |
| Diet | Entirely aerial diet of tiny insects and spiders; forages in large flocks over open country … | Feeds on aerial plankton of tiny insects and spiders; entire diet captured during non-stop aerial … |
| Clutch Size | 2 | 1-2 |
| Population Trend | — | — |
Habitat Comparison
Song & Call Comparison
Cave Swiftlet
Soft, rapid twittering; thin 'tsit-tsit' over Javan forests; audible echolocation clicks inside caves; colonial; produces squeaky chattering at roost sites; calls weakly in flight
Great Dusky Swift
Loud, churring trill; harsher and louder than other Cypseloides; calls over Iguacu Falls and major Neotropical waterfalls; buzzy 'bzzzt-bzzzt' in aerial groups
Geographic Range & Migration
Cave Swiftlet
Found in Sumatra, Java, Bali, and surrounding Indonesian islands. Resident in forest, cultivated land, and villages. Nests in rock crevices.
Great Dusky Swift
Found in eastern South America from Venezuela and the Guianas south to Bolivia and Paraguay. Resident near rocky cliffs and waterfalls.
Conservation Status
Cave Swiftlet
Great Dusky Swift
How to Tell Them Apart
Cave Swiftlet
Tiny; dark blue-black upperparts with faint gloss; pale greyish rump band; underparts whitish with grey-buff flanks; moderately forked tail; widespread in caves across Sundaland; less glossy and less white below …
Great Dusky Swift
Very large; entirely dark sooty-brown with pale grey forehead and chin scaling; slightly paler underparts; broad wings; largest Cypseloides swift; South American waterfall specialist with dusky uniform plumage and imposing …
About These Birds
Cave Swiftlet
A very small swiftlet (9 cm) found in Java, Bali, Sumatra, and the Lesser Sundas. Dark glossy plumage with a pale rump band. Aerial insectivore, foraging in flocks. One of the primary nest-producing swiftlets; its edible nests (made of saliva) are commercially harvested.
Great Dusky Swift
A large swift (18-20 cm) of southeastern Brazil, eastern Paraguay, and northeastern Argentina. Dark sooty-brown plumage. Aerial insectivore, foraging over forested gorges and waterfalls. Nests in large colonies behind waterfalls. The largest member of the genus Cypseloides.