Bird Guide

Glossy Swiftlet

Collocalia esculenta

Not EvaluatedInvertebratesForestCavity nestTiny · 6 g

About the Glossy Swiftlet

The glossy swiftlet is a species of swift in the family Apodidae. It is found on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi and eastwards to New Guinea, the Bismarck Archipelago and the Solomon Islands.

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

ID tip

This bird is shiny black-blue above, including its rump; sometimes looks black and hooded. Chest black; belly to flanks white with fine black speckles at margins. Wing tips are rounded; underwing is black. Tail rounded with shallow notch and tiny white panels. It is so similar to the white-rumped swiftlet that both its upperparts and underparts must be seen to distinguish between the two. It is 9 to 11.5 cm (3.5 to 4.5 in) in length. Its voice is a soft twittering.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Where the Glossy Swiftlet lives

Regular rangeRare visitor

Recorded as a rare visitor in India, Australia.

When to see the Glossy Swiftlet

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

Easily confused with

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