Spot-fronted Swift vs Great Dusky Swift
Cypseloides cherriei compared with Cypseloides senex
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Attribute | Spot-fronted Swift | Great Dusky Swift |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Cypseloides cherriei | Cypseloides senex |
| Order | Caprimulgiformes | Caprimulgiformes |
| Family | Apodidae | Apodidae |
| Conservation Status | Least Concern | Least Concern |
| Length | — | — |
| Wingspan | 25.0 cm (9.8 in) | 33.8 cm (13.3 in) |
| Weight | 22.725 g (0.80 oz) | 83.0 g (2.93 oz) |
| Diet | Feeds aerially on tiny insects and spiders, often following weather fronts where aerial plankton concentrates. | Feeds on aerial plankton of tiny insects and spiders; entire diet captured during non-stop aerial … |
| Clutch Size | 1 | 1-2 |
| Population Trend | — | — |
Habitat Comparison
Song & Call Comparison
Spot-fronted Swift
Soft 'chip-chip' notes; thin, quiet twittering in flight; calls over Colombian waterfalls and mountain streams; high-pitched weak trills; rarely vocal away from breeding
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
Spot-fronted Swift
Found in disjunct montane populations from Costa Rica and Venezuela south to Ecuador. Rare; associated with waterfalls at 600–2,000 m elevation.
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
Spot-fronted Swift
Great Dusky Swift
How to Tell Them Apart
Spot-fronted Swift
Sooty-black overall with distinctive white-spotted forehead; throat shows pale grey-white scaling; no other markings; dark uniform body contrasts with the unique white-spotted loral and frontal spots that name the species.
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
Spot-fronted Swift
A medium-sized dark swift (13-14 cm) of montane forests in Costa Rica and western Panama. Sooty-black plumage with white loral spots. Aerial insectivore, foraging high over forested ravines and mountain ridges. Rare and poorly known; classified as Near Threatened.
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.