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Bird Guide

Bates's Swift

Apus batesi

Least ConcernInvertebratesForestCavity nestSmall · 35 g
Bates's Swift (Apus batesi), photo 1
Photo: Jan Ebr & Ivana Ebrová · CC BY 4.0

About the Bates's Swift

Bates's swift is a species of small swift in the family Apodidae which is found in western Africa.

Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

ID tip

Bates's swift is a small, slender swift with a deeply forked tail which is often held closed to form a point. It has a glossy black plumage with an indistinct pale patch on the throat. It is normally silent but makes a high-pitched trill near the nest. They are 14 cm in length.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Where the Bates's Swift lives

Regular rangeRare visitor
Ghana Cameroon Equatorial Guinea Gabon Congo - Brazzaville Liberia Nigeria

Recorded as a rare visitor in Congo - Kinshasa.

When to see the Bates's Swift

Peak activity in November · a variable species across most of its range

Easily confused with

Forbes-Watson's Swift (Apus berliozi) Forbes-Watson's SwiftApus berlioziForbes-Watson's swift is a species of swift in the family Apodidae. Dark-rumped Swift (Apus acuticauda) Dark-rumped SwiftApus acuticaudaThe dark-rumped swift is a species of swift in the family Apodidae. Cape Verde Swift (Apus alexandri) Cape Verde SwiftApus alexandriIt is 13 cm long with a wingspan of 34 to 35 cm.

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