These birds have very short legs which they use only for clinging to vertical surfaces. The scientific name comes from the Greek απους, apous, meaning without feet. They never settle voluntarily on the ground.
The House Swift is classified as Least Concern. Does not qualify for a more at risk category. Widespread and abundant taxa are included in this category.
House Swift in the act of drinking water - Posted by BESG on 6 January 09, Tuesday Contributed by Lin Yangchen “Unlike Merops philippinus (Blue-tailed Bee-eater), Alcedo atthis (Common Kingfisher), Halcyon capensis (Stork-billed Kingfisher), Hirundo tahitica (Pacific Swallow) et al., apodids (swifts) do not seem to dive into water. More
to my surprise found the house swift sitting in the nest - see the second attachment (above right). No eggs are yet visible and I can only imagine how precarious the whole set up is.” Lim Poh Bee Singapore 24th September 2009 Note: Our bird specialist R Subaraj confirms the identity of the bird, “Certainly looks like a House Swift on the nest, though the nest appears incomplete. More
The House Swift is a small (15 cm) blackish swift with a white throat and rump and a slightly notched tail. The Taiwan subspecies kuntzi is described as having a more heavily streaked rump than mainland races, but differences are unlikely to be visible in the field. The House Swift feeds on flying insects such as wasps, bees and flies which it catches on the wing, usually at a great height. More
It was identified as a House Swift which is rarely recorded in Western Australia, and there were no known previous records for Ashmore Reef. This record has been accepted by the Birds Australia Rarities Committee (BARC) as Case 415. If you have any further comments about this bird, then email the comments to sightings@birdswa.com.au and I will put them on this web page as soon as possible. More
House Swift Apus affinis House Swift Photographer : More
| House Swift in English | House Swift in French Use Babylon to translate to various languages Copyright © 1997-2007 Babylon. More
House Swift (Apus nipalensis ) House Swift Common Name House Swift Scientific Name Apus nipalensis Order Accipitriformes Family Accipitridae Genus Aquila Species A. More
India’s population of the house swift has two breeding seasons per year. It is one of the few birds in the world in which this phenomenon has been demonstrated. Adult males are in full breeding condition in late January and again in May and June; eggs are laid in January and February and again in June to September. More
The House Swift or Little Swift is the most well-known bird on campus. The swifts and swallows are superficially similar to each other but are in fact of different orders. The house swift is a medium-sized aerial bird with an average body length of 15 cm. These small smokey-black birds fly in flocks and, in flight, look like small anchors due to their short square tail and long narrow wings. They also make a continuous ‘si-si’ call when flying. More
House Swift (Apus affinis), also called Little Swift, is a very common breeding resident in Haryana and most of India. This bird is found in most habitats near human habitation. Frequents old forts, deserted houses and ruined buildi~gs. Identification: Sexes alike. Small, smoky-black bird with white throat. It has a white rump, short square tail and long narrow wings. More
House Swifts feed on flying insects: mainly flying ants and termites (about 60%); bees and wasps (20%) and beetles. They also go for other titbits that they can snatch on the wing (spiders). House Swifts trawl the air for flying prey. They have a thick fringe of eyelash-like feathers to protect the eyes in case of mid-air collisions with insects, and have transparent eye membranes which keep their vision clear as they blink, like windshield wipers. More
The Little Swift (Apus affinis), or House Swift, is a small bird, superficially similar to a Barn Swallow or House Martin. It is, however, completely unrelated to those passerine species, since swifts are in the order Apodiformes. The resemblances between the groups are due to convergent evolution reflecting similar life styles. The eastern race, House Swift, is sometimes considered a separate species, Apus nipalensis. These birds have very short legs which they use only for clinging to vertical surfaces. More
House Swift - Definition = Little Swift Scientific classification Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Aves Order: Apodiformes Family: Apodidae Genus: Apus Species: affinis Binomial name Apus affinis More