White-chested Swift vs Mottled Spinetail

Cypseloides lemosi comparé à Telacanthura ussheri

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Side-by-Side Comparison

Attribut White-chested Swift Mottled Spinetail
Nom scientifique Cypseloides lemosi Telacanthura ussheri
Ordre Caprimulgiformes Caprimulgiformes
Famille Apodidae Apodidae
Statut de conservation Least Concern Least Concern
Longueur
Envergure 30,0 cm (11.8 in) 29,1 cm (11.5 in)
Poids 28,400000000000002 g (1.00 oz) 32,65 g (1.15 oz)
Régime alimentaire Obligate aerial forager catching small flies, aphids, winged termites, and airborne spiders on the wing. Aerial diet of small flying insects and spiders; forages at speed over forest and open …
Taille de la couvée -- 4
Population Trend
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Habitat Comparison

Habitats partagés

White-chested Swift only

Mottled Spinetail only

Aucun(e)

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Song & Call Comparison

White-chested Swift

Chant

High, thin twittering; soft 'tsit' calls in flight; calls over Colombian waterfalls; very poorly known; thin, reedy contact notes; one of most rarely documented swifts

Mottled Spinetail

Chant

Harsh, grating screech followed by rapid chattering; loud, raspy trill repeated insistently near colony roost sites.

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Geographic Range & Migration

White-chested Swift

Known from Colombia and adjacent Ecuador. One of the world's rarest swifts; recorded at waterfalls in humid forest foothills at 500–1,200 m.

Mottled Spinetail

Found across sub-Saharan Africa from Gambia east to Ethiopia and south to Zambia. Resident in forest, forest edge, and savanna woodland.

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Statut de conservation

Least Concern

White-chested Swift

Least Concern

Mottled Spinetail

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How to Tell Them Apart

White-chested Swift

Plumage

Black upperparts and wings; distinctive large white chest patch contrasting sharply with black throat and belly; white confined to central breast; Colombian endemic with unique bold bicoloured plumage unlike any …

Mottled Spinetail

Plumage

Large spinetail; dark blackish-brown upperparts; white-mottled pale greyish underparts creating distinctively spotted belly; white rump band; spiny tail tips; African forest species with unique mottled underpart pattern among spinetails.

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About These Birds

White-chested Swift

A medium-sized swift (14-15 cm) endemic to the upper Cauca Valley of Colombia. Sooty-black plumage with a white breast patch. Aerial insectivore of subtropical forests. Classified as Endangered due to extremely restricted range and ongoing habitat loss.

Mottled Spinetail

A medium-sized spinetail swift (14-15 cm) found in tropical forests across sub-Saharan Africa. Dark plumage with white mottling on the throat and belly. Spine-tipped tail for clinging to vertical surfaces. Aerial insectivore. Nests inside hollow trees and palm trunks.

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