Great Dusky Swift vs Sabine's Spinetail

Cypseloides senex verglichen mit Rhaphidura sabini

Side-by-Side Comparison

Merkmal Great Dusky Swift Sabine's Spinetail
Wissenschaftlicher Name Cypseloides senex Rhaphidura sabini
Ordnung Caprimulgiformes Caprimulgiformes
Familie Apodidae Apodidae
Erhaltungsstatus Least Concern Least Concern
Länge
Flügelspannweite 33,8 cm (13.3 in) 24,7 cm (9.7 in)
Gewicht 83,0 g (2.93 oz) 17,75 g (0.63 oz)
Ernährung Feeds on aerial plankton of tiny insects and spiders; entire diet captured during non-stop aerial … Aerial insectivore feeding on tiny flies, beetles, and ballooning spiders in rapid powerful aerial pursuit.
Gelegegröße 1-2 2-3
Population Trend

Habitat Comparison

Gemeinsame Lebensräume

Great Dusky Swift only

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Sabine's Spinetail only

Song & Call Comparison

Great Dusky Swift

Gesang

Loud, churring trill; harsher and louder than other Cypseloides; calls over Iguacu Falls and major Neotropical waterfalls; buzzy 'bzzzt-bzzzt' in aerial groups

Sabine's Spinetail

Gesang

Faint, needle-thin whistle tapering at the end; soft twittering interspersed with clicking flight notes, barely audible.

Geographic Range & Migration

Great Dusky Swift

Found in eastern South America from Venezuela and the Guianas south to Bolivia and Paraguay. Resident near rocky cliffs and waterfalls.

Sabine's Spinetail

Found in West and Central Africa from Sierra Leone east to the DRC and Uganda. Resident in lowland rainforest and forest edge.

Erhaltungsstatus

Least Concern

Great Dusky Swift

Least Concern

Sabine's Spinetail

How to Tell Them Apart

Great Dusky Swift

Gefieder

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 …

Sabine's Spinetail

Gefieder

Small; dark blackish-brown upperparts; white rump patch; underparts pale grey-white; short spiny tail; West African rainforest species; closely resembles Silver-rumped Spinetail but purer white rump with less silvery sheen.

About These Birds

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.

Sabine's Spinetail

A small spinetail swift (11-12 cm) of lowland forests across West and Central Africa. Dark plumage with a white rump patch. Spine-tipped tail. Aerial insectivore, often seen foraging over forest canopy in mixed-species swift flocks. Nests in hollow trees.

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