Band-rumped Swift

Overview

The band-rumped swift (Chaetura spinicaudus) is a small bird in the swift family Apodidae, found across various regions of Central and South America. It is classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, with an estimated population of at least 500,000 mature individuals.

Identification

• Length of 10.5 to 12.6 cm, with a protruding head, a short square tail, and wings that bulge in the middle and hook at the end.
• Nominate subspecies have black-brown upperparts with a distinct white band on the rump, and dark underparts with a slightly paler throat.
• Subspecies C. s. aetherodroma is smaller, with a grayer rump patch and a paler throat.
• The nominate subspecies produces a diagnostic bisyllabic 'pseee-trr' or burry 'prrrree-trr' call, sometimes accompanied by repeated 'tsee-tsee-tsee' notes.

Habitat

Found from Panama south through Colombia into Ecuador, east from Venezuela into the Guianas and Brazil, and on Trinidad. It primarily inhabits the edges of lowland evergreen and secondary forests, though in Amazonia it is also seen over highland forests and cleared areas, and in northern Venezuela it inhabits only open areas.

Diet

An aerial insectivore that feeds in single-species flocks at high altitudes, or lower in mixed-species flocks, often over water at dawn and dusk. Its diet in Panama consists mainly of Diptera, Hymenoptera, and Coleoptera, and it has been observed hovering briefly to take prey from foliage.

Did you know?

In addition to its typical aerial feeding, the band-rumped swift has been observed hovering briefly to capture prey from foliage, a behaviour that distinguishes it from many other swifts.