Cave Swiftlet vs African Palm Swift
Collocalia linchi compared with Cypsiurus parvus
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Attribute | Cave Swiftlet | African Palm Swift |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Collocalia linchi | Cypsiurus parvus |
| Order | Caprimulgiformes | Caprimulgiformes |
| Family | Apodidae | Apodidae |
| Conservation Status | Least Concern | Least Concern |
| Length | — | — |
| Wingspan | 18.7 cm (7.4 in) | 27.2 cm (10.7 in) |
| Weight | 6.05 g (0.21 oz) | 14.38 g (0.51 oz) |
| Diet | Entirely aerial diet of tiny insects and spiders; forages in large flocks over open country … | Exclusively aerial diet; consumes tiny flying insects and spiders, sometimes following insect swarms for km. |
| Clutch Size | 2 | 1-3 |
| 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
African Palm Swift
Deep, hollow churring trill with resonant bass quality; prolonged vibrating call audible at significant range in open woodland.
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.
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
Cave Swiftlet
African Palm 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 …
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
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.
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.