Spot-fronted Swift (Cypseloides cherriei)

Identification & Behavior: ~14 cm (5.51 in) Spot-fronted Swifts are blackish overall. Some individuals may have whitish scaling on their lower belly. The white markings on the head of this square-tailed Cypseloides swift make it stand out. All individuals seem to have a white spot in front and behind their eyes and a variable amount of white on their chin. If the bird is seen well in good light, identification can be easier than other swifts. The Spot-fronted Swift is slightly larger than the more common Chestnut-collared Swift.

.Status: Spot-fronted Swifts are poorly known and perhaps overlooked. It was discovered in Peru as a result of a chance encounter between biologists conducting a nocturnal herp survey at a waterfall where Spot-fronted Swifts were roosting. One individual was captured, photographed, and released. In other parts of its range, it can be found in humid montane forest at altitudes up to 2500 m. This swift has been photographed in the Amazonian lowlands of Ecuador at 300 m. The Spot-fronted Swift also occurs in Co and Ec.

Name in Spanish: Vencejo de Frente Punteada.

Sub-species: Spot-fronted Swift (Cypseloides cherriei), (Ridgway, 1893).

Meaning of Name: Cypseloides: Gr. Cypselus= Genus Cypselus Illiger 1811. Oidēs= resembling. cherriei: In honor of American field ornithologist and collector George Kruck Cherrie.

See more of the Family Apodidae