White-rumped Swift

Apus caffer (Lichtenstein, MHC, 1823)

White-rumped Swift, Apus caffer, is a swift that breeds across much of sub-Saharan Africa, with further breeding in the southern Iberian Peninsula and c Morocco. It is linked to man-made structures such as bridges and buildings, because its nesting depends on the sites used by other birds. The bird is mostly dark, with a pale throat patch and a narrow white rump, and it has long swept-back wings and a short forked tail. It takes over nests made by little swifts and by swallows that build retort-shaped nests, and lays one or two eggs there.

Order

Apodiformes

Family

Apodidae — Swifts

Breeding range

Palearctic, Africa: s Iberian Peninsula, c Morocco, and sub-Saharan Africa