Apus affinis
The Little Swift (Apus affinis) is a small, highly aerial bird belonging to the Apodidae family, often seen wheeling gracefully over human settlements and natural cliffs across vast swathes of the Old World. Measuring a compact 12-13.5 cm in length with a wingspan of 33-35 cm, this swift sports a sooty-brown to blackish plumage, strikingly contrasted by a distinctive white rump patch and a clean white throat. Its tail, usually held square or slightly notched when spread, helps differentiate i...
Primarily found in urban and semi-urban areas, benefiting from human structures for nesting, as well as natural cliffs, rocky outcrops, and gorges. It ranges from sea level up to elevations of several thousand meters in mountainous regions.
Exclusively insectivorous, feeding on a wide variety of small aerial insects including flies, beetles, ants, and termites. Forages by hawking insects on the wing, often in large, active flocks.
Little Swifts are strictly diurnal, spending nearly their entire day airborne, tirelessly foraging for insects. They are highly colonial birds, often nesting in large, noisy aggregations on cliffs or, more commonly, on buildings, bridges, and other anthropogenic structures, sometimes forming dens...
The Little Swift boasts an expansive distribution across the Old World, primarily resident throughout much of Sub-Saharan Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, and the Indian Subcontinent. Its breeding range extends eastward through Southeast Asia, including parts of Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, and Indo...
Least Concern
- Little Swifts are renowned for their incredible aerial lives, spending nearly all their time on the wing, only landing to nest or roost. - They are master architects, constructing their cup-shaped nests from airborne materials like feathers and plant debris, meticulously cemented together with ...