White-chinned Swift vs African Palm Swift
Cypseloides cryptus compared with Cypsiurus parvus
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Attribute | White-chinned Swift | African Palm Swift |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Cypseloides cryptus | Cypsiurus parvus |
| Order | Caprimulgiformes | Caprimulgiformes |
| Family | Apodidae | Apodidae |
| Conservation Status | Least Concern | Least Concern |
| Length | — | — |
| Wingspan | 27.4 cm (10.8 in) | 27.2 cm (10.7 in) |
| Weight | 35.95 g (1.27 oz) | 14.38 g (0.51 oz) |
| Diet | Aerial-only diet of small flying insects, winged termites, and drifting spiders caught during continuous flight. | Exclusively aerial diet; consumes tiny flying insects and spiders, sometimes following insect swarms for km. |
| Clutch Size | 1 | 1-3 |
| Population Trend | — | — |
Habitat Comparison
Shared Habitats
White-chinned Swift only
None
African Palm Swift only
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
African Palm Swift
Deep, hollow churring trill with resonant bass quality; prolonged vibrating call audible at significant range in open woodland.
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.
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
White-chinned Swift
African Palm 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 …
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
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.
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.