African Palm Swift vs White-rumped Spinetail
Cypsiurus parvus compared with Zoonavena sylvatica
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Attribute | African Palm Swift | White-rumped Spinetail |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Cypsiurus parvus | Zoonavena sylvatica |
| Order | Caprimulgiformes | Caprimulgiformes |
| Family | Apodidae | Apodidae |
| Conservation Status | Least Concern | Least Concern |
| Length | — | — |
| Wingspan | 27.2 cm (10.7 in) | 22.1 cm (8.7 in) |
| Weight | 14.38 g (0.51 oz) | 13.0 g (0.46 oz) |
| Diet | Exclusively aerial diet; consumes tiny flying insects and spiders, sometimes following insect swarms for km. | Catches aerial plankton of small insects and spiders in fast sweeping flight; roosts in rock … |
| Clutch Size | 1-3 | 3-5 |
| Population Trend | — | — |
Habitat Comparison
Shared Habitats
African Palm Swift only
White-rumped Spinetail 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.
White-rumped Spinetail
Shrill, reedy twittering calls; thin whistled notes cascading rapidly in flight, carrying a faint metallic quality overhead.
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.
White-rumped Spinetail
Found in southwestern India (Western Ghats) and Sri Lanka. Resident in humid forest and forest edge in hills up to 1,800 m.
Conservation Status
African Palm Swift
White-rumped Spinetail
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.
White-rumped Spinetail
Small; dark brown-black upperparts; bright white rump band strongly contrasting with dark back; underparts pale whitish; short spiny tail; South Asian forest species; white rump conspicuous in flight distinguishing it …
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.
White-rumped Spinetail
A small spinetail swift (10-11 cm) found in foothill and montane forests of the Indian subcontinent, from the Himalayas to the Western Ghats and Sri Lanka. Dark plumage with a white rump band and spine-tipped tail. Aerial insectivore. Nests behind waterfalls and in caves.