Drab Swiftlet vs African Palm Swift
Collocalia neglecta compared with Cypsiurus parvus
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Attribute | Drab Swiftlet | African Palm Swift |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Collocalia neglecta | Cypsiurus parvus |
| Order | Caprimulgiformes | Caprimulgiformes |
| Family | Apodidae | Apodidae |
| Conservation Status | Not Evaluated | Least Concern |
| Length | — | — |
| Wingspan | — | 27.2 cm (10.7 in) |
| Weight | 5.9 g (0.21 oz) | 14.38 g (0.51 oz) |
| Diet | Entirely airborne insectivore; feeds on minute flying insects and web-dispersing spiders over open habitats. | Exclusively aerial diet; consumes tiny flying insects and spiders, sometimes following insect swarms for km. |
| Clutch Size | 1-2 | 1-3 |
| Population Trend | — | — |
Habitat Comparison
Song & Call Comparison
Drab Swiftlet
High, thin twittering; 'tsit-tsit' in flight; echolocation clicks inside cave roosts; small size and unremarkable plumage matched by simple, thin high-pitched calls
African Palm Swift
Deep, hollow churring trill with resonant bass quality; prolonged vibrating call audible at significant range in open woodland.
Geographic Range & Migration
Drab Swiftlet
Found on the Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Simeuluë Island off Sumatra. Resident in coastal and lowland habitats. Sedentary.
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
Drab Swiftlet
African Palm Swift
How to Tell Them Apart
Drab Swiftlet
Tiny; dull brownish-grey upperparts with little or no gloss; whitish-buff rump band; pale greyish-buff underparts; forked tail; as the name implies, lacks the iridescent gloss of most Collocalia swiftlets; island …
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
Drab Swiftlet
A small swiftlet (10 cm) found in the Philippines, Sulawesi, and the Moluccas. Dark grey-brown plumage, less glossy than related species. Aerial insectivore. Colonial cave nester. Taxonomy has been revised repeatedly; sometimes merged with other swiftlet taxa.
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.