White-chinned Swift vs Great Dusky Swift
Cypseloides cryptus compared with Cypseloides senex
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Attribute | White-chinned Swift | Great Dusky Swift |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Cypseloides cryptus | Cypseloides senex |
| Order | Caprimulgiformes | Caprimulgiformes |
| Family | Apodidae | Apodidae |
| Conservation Status | Least Concern | Least Concern |
| Length | — | — |
| Wingspan | 27.4 cm (10.8 in) | 33.8 cm (13.3 in) |
| Weight | 35.95 g (1.27 oz) | 83.0 g (2.93 oz) |
| Diet | Aerial-only diet of small flying insects, winged termites, and drifting spiders caught during continuous flight. | 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
White-chinned Swift
Soft, buzzy twittering; weak 'tsit-tsit' in flight; calls over Neotropical waterfalls; thin, high-pitched contact notes; soft compared to most swifts; rarely vocal
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
White-chinned Swift
Found from southern Mexico south through Central America and northwestern South America to Bolivia. Nomadic; joins large mixed swift flocks.
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
White-chinned Swift
Great Dusky Swift
How to Tell Them Apart
White-chinned Swift
Uniformly sooty-black plumage with narrow white chin spot; no white rump or other pale markings; large for a Cypseloides; cryptic appearance made identification historically difficult; white chin the sole distinguishing …
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
White-chinned Swift
A medium-sized swift (14-15 cm) of humid lowland and foothill forests from southern Mexico to Peru. Dark sooty-brown plumage with a small white chin patch. Aerial insectivore, feeding over forest canopy and ravines. Nests behind waterfalls. Uncommon and poorly studied.
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.