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Swifts

Swifts are a family of highly aerial birds known as Apodidae, which reside within the Apodiformes order alongside hummingbirds. They resemble swallows due to convergent evolution, as both hunt insects on the fly, but they are not closely related. Swifts have small, weak legs, which led to them sometimes being depicted without feet historically. Their classification is complex, with some fossil evidence suggesting they appeared during the Eocene period. There are about 100 species of swifts, which are known for their high speeds, with the white-throated needletail reaching up to 169 km/h. They have elongated wingtip bones and the ability to rotate their wings from the base, which aids in their maneuverability and efficiency in flight. Swiftlets have evolved a form of echolocation to navigate dark caves. These birds are found worldwide except in the extremes of the polar, desert, and some oceanic islands, and migratory swifts travel from temperate regions to the tropics in winter. Their nests, often attached to vertical surfaces with saliva or located in wall cavities, are unique—some are used in the traditional bird's nest soup. Swifts are insectivores, hunting mid-flight, and their breeding and development patterns are more similar to seabirds than passerines. While no swift species has been recorded as extinct since 1600, some are considered endangered or vulnerable due to factors including habitat loss and overharvesting of their nests by humans for culinary purposes.

Regions

Categories

Atiu Swiftlet

Aerodramus sawtelli
A photo of a Australian Swiftlet (Aerodramus terraereginae)

Australian Swiftlet

Aerodramus terraereginae
A photo of a Chimney Swift (Chaetura pelagica)

Chimney Swift

Chaetura pelagica

Glossy Swiftlet

Collocalia esculenta

Island Swiftlet

Aerodramus inquietus

Mariana Swiftlet

Aerodramus bartschi

Marquesan Swiftlet

Aerodramus ocistus

Mayr's Swiftlet

Aerodramus orientalis
A photo of a Pacific Swift (Apus pacificus)

Pacific Swift

Apus pacificus

Palau Swiftlet

Aerodramus pelewensis

Satin Swiftlet

Collocalia uropygialis

Tahiti Swiftlet

Aerodramus leucophaeus

Uniform Swiftlet

Aerodramus vanikorensis

White-rumped Swiftlet

Aerodramus spodiopygius
A photo of a White-throated Needletail (Hirundapus caudacutus)

White-throated Needletail

Hirundapus caudacutus
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