Apodinae

• Aerodramus
• Aeronautes
• Apus
• Chaetura
• Collocalia
• Cypsiurus
• Hirundapus
• Mearnsia
• Neafrapus
• Panyptila
• Rhaphidura
• Tachornis
• Common Swift Apus apus

  A summer visitor to the UK, the Common Swift spends almost all its life on the wing, catching small insects and spiders in the air.

• Alpine Swift Tachymarptis melba

  The Alpine Swift is a large swift with a pale belly. In a tracking study, one individual was reported to remain almost continuously in flight for more than 200 days.

• Chimney Swift Chaetura pelagica

  Chimney Swifts catch insects in flight and cling to the inside walls of chimneys or tree cavities when they rest.

• Pallid Swift Apus pallidus

  This brown swift has a white throat, breeds from the Mediterranean to the Persian Gulf and winters in the Sahel.

• White-throated Needletail Hirundapus caudacutus

  The White-throated Needletail is a large swift with long wings and needle-like tail feathers. It catches insects and drinks while flying, and moves seasonally between northeast Asia and eastern Australia.

• Little Swift Apus affinis

  The Little Swift catches food in the air. In southern Africa it also nests in colonies on bridges and buildings.

• Pacific swift Apus pacificus

  A long-winged bird that catches insects in flight and visits Japan in summer.

• White-rumped Swift Apus caffer

  A swift that catches insects in flight. In southern Africa, it may breed in nests taken over from other birds.

• Asian Palm Swift Cypsiurus balasiensis

  The Asian Palm Swift is a slender, small swift that attaches its nest with saliva beneath palm leaves.

• Madagascan Spinetail Zoonavena grandidieri

  This small swift is about 12 cm long and occurs on Madagascar and Grand Comoro in the Comoro Islands. It catches insects in the air by day.

• Plain Swift Apus unicolor

  This blackish-brown swift has a small pale throat patch, narrow pointed wings and a deeply forked tail. It breeds on Madeira and the Canaries, and some birds move to North Africa in winter.

• African Palm Swift Cypsiurus parvus

  The African Palm Swift is a slender swift with a deeply forked tail that clings beneath palm fronds.