African Palm Swift vs Mottled Swift
Cypsiurus parvus compared with Tachymarptis aequatorialis
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Attribute | African Palm Swift | Mottled Swift |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Cypsiurus parvus | Tachymarptis aequatorialis |
| Order | Caprimulgiformes | Caprimulgiformes |
| Family | Apodidae | Apodidae |
| Conservation Status | Least Concern | Least Concern |
| Length | — | — |
| Wingspan | 27.2 cm (10.7 in) | 41.5 cm (16.3 in) |
| Weight | 14.38 g (0.51 oz) | 94.0 g (3.32 oz) |
| Diet | Exclusively aerial diet; consumes tiny flying insects and spiders, sometimes following insect swarms for km. | Entirely airborne feeder on tiny flies, gnats, and airborne arachnids; one of the most aerial … |
| Clutch Size | 1-3 | 1-2 |
| Population Trend | — | — |
Habitat Comparison
Shared Habitats
None
African Palm Swift only
Mottled Swift only
None
Song & Call Comparison
African Palm Swift
Deep, hollow churring trill with resonant bass quality; prolonged vibrating call audible at significant range in open woodland.
Mottled Swift
Rough, coarse chatter with scratchy texture; bursts of harsh notes blending into continuous buzzy trill near nesting cliffs.
Geographic Range & Migration
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.
Mottled Swift
Found across equatorial Africa from Guinea east to Ethiopia and south to Zambia. Resident in highland forests and rocky cliffs at 900–3,400 m.
Conservation Status
African Palm Swift
Mottled Swift
How to Tell Them Apart
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.
Mottled Swift
Large; dark brown upperparts; mottled white and brown underparts with white scales on each feather creating scaled appearance; pale throat; African montane species closely related to Alpine Swift but with …
About These Birds
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.
Mottled Swift
A large swift (20-22 cm) found in montane regions of eastern and southern Africa, typically at 1,500-3,000 m elevation. Dark plumage with mottled white underparts and throat. Aerial insectivore. Often seen in large flocks soaring over mountain escarpments and gorges.