Swift and Swallow key
1
- White patch on rump > go to 2
- Rump black or brown > skip to 6
x

2
- Tail square > go to 3
- Tail forked > skip to 5
x

3
- Belly white; flies like a bat; tail very short; often around baobabs in tropical areas
> BÖHM’S SPINETAIL
- Belly black > go to 4
x

4
- Common (even in cities); often in flocks; nests on bridges or buildings; whitish throat; noisy trilling screams
> LITTLE SWIFT
- Rare; usually around baobabs in tropical areas; mottled throat; white belly-band
> MOTTLED SPINETAIL
x

5
- Slender shape; long, pointed, forked tail; narrow white rump; often a bit of white on the rear edge of its wing; often in pairs; may be seen around houses or bridges; takes over swallow nests
> WHITE-RUMPED SWIFT
- Big, strong shape; shallowly forked tail; broad white block on rump; often in little groups; nests in tunnels in vertical sand banks
> HORUS SWIFT

6
- Belly blackish or brown, with or without “scales”
> go to 7
- Belly white; a very big swift that flies super-fast
> ALPINE SWIFT
x

7
- Size smallish to medium
> go to 8
- Size very large; distinctive pale-edged “scales” on its belly; usually near big rock domes in Zimbabwe
> MOTTLED SWIFT
x

8
- Typical swift shape; forked tail
> go to 9
- Skinny and pointy shape; deeply forked tail with long tips
> go to 11
x

9
- Looks black overall; widespread
> go to 10
- Looks more brownish; belly “scaly”; lives in dry western habitats
> BRADFIELD’S SWIFT
x

10
- Normally quiet; only ever seen in the sky (not around cliffs etc.); often in spread-out flocks associated with storms or fronts; does not breed here; wing evenly coloured when seen from above
> COMMON SWIFT
- Often noisy; may be seen in the sky or around cliffs and quarries where it breeds; innerwing paler when seen from above
> AFRICAN BLACK SWIFT

11
- Very fine and delicate like a flying boomerang; forages far but nests in palms; common and widespread, even in towns and gardens; brown underwings; throat not much paler
> AFRICAN PALM SWIFT
- Very rare: found above mountain forests in eastern Zimbabwe only; blackish underwings; throat paler
> SCARCE SWIFT
