Streptoprocne rutila
The Chestnut-collared Swift (*Streptoprocne rutila*) is a captivating medium-sized aerial insectivore, typically measuring 13-14 cm (5.1-5.5 in) in length and weighing around 23-28 grams. Its sleek, dark sooty-black plumage is dramatically punctuated by a striking rufous-chestnut band across its nape and upper back, often extending to the throat, providing its distinctive namesake field mark. This swift is a member of the Apodidae family, sharing its genus *Streptoprocne* with larger, similar...
This species primarily inhabits humid evergreen forests, cloud forests, and montane rainforests, often associated with cliffs, gorges, or caves for roosting and nesting. It can be found from near sea level up to elevations exceeding 2,500 meters, occasionally reaching 3,000 meters in certain regi...
The Chestnut-collared Swift is an obligate aerial insectivore, primarily consuming a wide array of flying insects including beetles, flies, wasps, ants, and termites. It forages by continuously hawking for prey high in the sky, capturing insects directly with its wide gape while in flight.
Chestnut-collared Swifts are almost exclusively aerial, spending the vast majority of their daylight hours soaring and foraging high above the canopy. They are highly social birds, often observed in large, boisterous flocks, sometimes mixing with other swift species, and roost communally in caves...
The Chestnut-collared Swift boasts an extensive distribution across the Neotropics, ranging from west-central Mexico, specifically from Jalisco and Nayarit southward, through Central America. Its range encompasses Guatemala, Belize, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama, extend...
Least Concern
- The Chestnut-collared Swift can spend virtually its entire day in flight, even drinking and bathing by skimming water surfaces. - Their nests are masterpieces of natural engineering, built from vegetation and mud cemented together with their own saliva onto vertical surfaces. - They are often o...