Cook's Swift vs African Palm Swift

Apus cooki comparado con Cypsiurus parvus

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Side-by-Side Comparison

Atributo Cook's Swift African Palm Swift
Nombre científico Apus cooki Cypsiurus parvus
Orden Caprimulgiformes Caprimulgiformes
Familia Apodidae Apodidae
Estado de conservación Not Evaluated Least Concern
Longitud
Envergadura 27,2 cm (10.7 in)
Peso 42,949999999999996 g (1.52 oz) 14,38 g (0.51 oz)
Dieta Catches aerial plankton — tiny midges, gnats, and ballooning spiders — continuously during soaring flight. Exclusively aerial diet; consumes tiny flying insects and spiders, sometimes following insect swarms for km.
Tamaño de la puesta -- 1-3
Population Trend
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Habitat Comparison

Hábitats compartidos

Ninguno

Cook's Swift only

Ninguno

African Palm Swift only

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Song & Call Comparison

Cook's Swift

Canto

Bright, flute-like series of liquid notes; clear melodic phrase ascending slightly then resolving on a sustained pure tone.

African Palm Swift

Canto

Deep, hollow churring trill with resonant bass quality; prolonged vibrating call audible at significant range in open woodland.

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Geographic Range & Migration

Cook's Swift

Found from southern Thailand through the Thai-Malay Peninsula to Sumatra, Borneo, and adjacent islands. Resident in lowland forest.

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.

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Estado de conservación

Not Evaluated

Cook's Swift

Least Concern

African Palm Swift

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How to Tell Them Apart

Cook's Swift

Plumaje

Dark sooty-brown upperparts; white rump patch; pale white throat; dark underparts; deeply forked tail; recently split taxon from Pacific Swift complex; plumage essentially identical to close relatives, distinguished primarily by …

African Palm Swift

Plumaje

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.

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About These Birds

Cook's Swift

A medium-sized swift (16-17 cm) found in montane forests from the Malay Peninsula through Southeast Asia to southern China. Dark plumage with a pale throat. Aerial insectivore. Named after Frederick Cook. Until recently considered conspecific with Pacific Swift.

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.

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