About the Chimney Swift
The chimney swift is a bird belonging to the swift family Apodidae. A member of the genus Chaetura, it is closely related to both Vaux's swift and Chapman's swift; in the past, the three were sometimes considered to be conspecific. It has no subspecies. The chimney swift is a medium-sized, sooty gray bird with very long, slender wings and very short legs. Like all swifts, it is incapable of perching on flat surfaces, and can only perch on vertical surfaces. Many fly around all day and only come down at night when roosting.
Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
ID tip
This is a medium-sized swift, measuring from 12 to 15 cm (4.7 to 5.9 in) in length, with a wingspan of 27 to 30 cm (11 to 12 in) and a weight ranging from 17 to 30 g (0.60 to 1.06 oz). The sexes are identical in plumage, though males average slightly heavier than females. The adult's plumage is a dark sooty olive above and grayish brown below, with a slightly paler rump and uppertail covert feathers, and a significantly paler throat. Its upperparts are the most uniformly colored of all the Chaetura swifts, showing little contrast between back and rump. Voice: The chimney swift has a twittering call, consisting of a rapid series of hard, high-pitched chirps. It sometimes gives single chirps.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
What the Chimney Swift sounds like
Where the Chimney Swift lives
Recorded as a rare visitor in Sweden, United Kingdom, Taiwan, Spain, Curaçao, Guadeloupe, France, Brazil.
When to see the Chimney Swift
Peak activity in May · a summer visitor species across most of its range
Easily confused with
Vaux's SwiftChaetura vauxiThis is a small swift, even compared to other Chaetura species, at 10.7 to 11.2 cm (4.2 to 4.4 in) long and weighing 18 g (0.63 oz).
Grey-rumped SwiftChaetura cinereiventrisThe grey-rumped swift is about 10.5 cm (4.1 in) long and weighs about 17 g (0.60 oz).
Sick's SwiftChaetura meridionalisThe upperparts dark smoky brown.
Side by side: Chimney Swift vs Vaux's Swift
Learn the Chimney Swift in BeakBrain
Photo and call practice, free in any browser.
Play BeakBrainEvery photo and recording on this page is credited to its author under the licence shown. Spotted a problem with this page, or have a better photo? Contribute.