Swift or Swallow: How To Tell The Difference?

Swift (ape) and swallow (Bumblebee) are two hallmark signs of the arrival of summer in British skies, heralding the onset of warmer weather and longer hours of sunshine. The fast-flying aerial birds, swifts and swallows, can be difficult to distinguish from the ground, but a closer look reveals two very different birds in appearance and behavior. So what’s the main difference between these two high-altitude summer visitors?

One way to tell a swift from a swallow is by looking at its silhouette when looking up at the sky. Swifts have sickle-shaped wings and slightly blunt forked tails, while swallows have longer trailing forked tails and more rounded wings.

Feathers are also key, but it’s rare to get close enough to a swift to get a close glimpse of its plumage. You might spot swallows briefly resting on telephone wires in the countryside, spotting glimmers of blue back and wing feathers, and bright orange throats. Swifts are dark brown all over, with some white markings on their faces.

These are two quick ways to tell the difference between swallows and swifts, but not the only way to learn to tell them apart, so read on to learn how to easily identify these two acrobat fliers with confidence and accuracy.

Universal Swift

swallow

Which is bigger, the swift or the swallow?

Looking up at the sky from the ground, it’s hard to tell which is bigger – the swift or the swallow.

Both birds are about the same length and weight, with the swallow being slightly longer and the swift being slightly heavier. However, the key difference is the wingspan. The swift’s elongated, crescent-shaped wings are about twice the length of a swallow’s wing. Swallows have longer tails, which increase their overall length.

swallow measurement

• On average, swallows are between 17 and 19 centimeters (6.7 and 7.5 inches) long
• Swallows weigh 32 to 35 grams (1.1 to 1.2 ounces)
• The swallow’s wingspan varies from 16 to 25 cm (6.3 to 9.8 in)

quick measurement

• The average length of a swift is between 16 and 17 centimeters (6.3 and 6.7 inches)
• Swifts weigh 36 to 50 grams (1.3 to 1.8 ounces)
• Swifts have a wingspan between 42 and 48 centimeters (16.5 and 18.9 inches)

perching swift

Which is more common, swifts or swallows?

There are 860,000 swallow breeding colonies in the UK, but only 59,000 pairs of swifts. Swifts are listed as a globally threatened species and listed in red (the highest level of conservation priority) in the 2021 UK State of Conservation report.

In the UK you are more likely to see swallows than swifts.

Other Differences Between Swifts and Swallows

Although both are aerial birds, swifts can fly much higher than swallows and are much faster. Swallows fly closer to the ground and can be seen skimming the lake to feed on insects.

They can reach a top speed of 35 mph. Swallows are often seen perching briefly on fences, telephone wires or barn roofs before swooping down to catch insects from the air or pick up wet mud to build their nests.

Swifts fly higher in the sky, soaring at speeds of up to 69 mph and never landing. They eat, sleep, and even mate on their wings.

Their feet are not adapted for walking, only short legs, which they sometimes use to cling to vertical walls when entering their dens, but never land unless injured or in distress.

perching barn swallow

feed

Swifts and swallows both feed on their wings and feed exclusively on insects, although they have slightly different ways of catching insects. Swallows feed near the ground, swooping down to catch insects near or on lakes or in open pastures and meadows. They skim the lake, scooping up water with their beaks to drink.

Swifts feed on flying insects and aerial spiders at altitudes between 50 and 100 meters (160 and 330 ft), although insects are found at higher altitudes in warmer weather. Swifts drink by catching raindrops in flight, but occasionally drink from lakes by swooping down like swallows do in cold weather.

swift flight

nesting

Swallows build messy cup-shaped nests of wet mud under the eaves of barns or abandoned farmhouses. In contrast, swifts use hardly any nesting materials, preferring to nest in holes or cavities in buildings, or in the specially designed nest boxes and specially made “swift bricks” found in the walls of some modern houses. ” in the nest.

migrant

Both swallows and swifts are migratory birds, but have slightly different schedules each year during their summer and winter journeys to and from Africa. Swallows are the first to arrive and appear from March until October in the UK.

The first swifts usually start appearing in mid-April and leave in August once their young are able to make longer, sustained flights.

Swallows that breed in the British Isles spend the winter in South Africa before migrating across the Sahara, Morocco, Spain and western France to Britain.

In their annual migration, swifts do not usually migrate south to Africa like swallows, but tend to spend the winter in the equatorial and sub-Saharan regions.

Barn swallow’s courtship display

scope

In the UK, swallows are more common and more widespread than swifts. Swifts breed throughout the UK, but populations are mainly concentrated in southern and eastern England. Swallows are common summer visitors throughout the UK, except for a few small areas in the extreme Scottish Highlands.

You’re more likely to see swifts in urban areas, while swallows are often found in rural landscapes near water.

sound and calls

• Swifts have a very distinctive high-pitched call that can often be heard overhead before they come into view.
• Swallows have a more melodious call, with chirping and twittering songs, often heard while roosting.

Common Swift close-up

feather

Up close, swifts and swallows are visually distinct. Male and female swifts are very similar in appearance, with dark black to smoke brown plumage, black beak, and some white markings on the throat and face.

Male swallows have smooth blue backs, wings and tails. Their faces and throats are a rusty red-orange, separated from their off-white lower bodies by a band of blue.

Closeup of Barn Swallow

female swift vs female swallow

Female and male swifts are very similar in appearance, with one slight difference being the brightness of the pale facial feathers. Male swifts have slightly whiter chin and throat markings than females.

Female swallows are similar to males in shape, size, and color, but have shorter, often dull tail feathers. Their faces and throats are a softer orange-red color, and their lower bodies are paler.

Junior Swift vs. Junior Swallow

Juvenile swifts are darker brown-black than adults, with a faint “eyebrow” marking on their faces. Little swifts flung their feathers 35 to 56 days after hatching.

Juvenile swallows are a more mottled brown-blue color and do not have the long tails of adults. Baby swallows are ready to leave the nest much earlier than baby swifts, developing their wings between 17 and 24 days.