Black Swift

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Black Swift

Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Apodiformes
Family:	Apodidae
Genus:	Cypseloides
Species:	C. niger

Binomial name

Cypseloides niger
(Gmelin, 1789)

The Black Swift (Cypseloides niger) is North America’s largest swift. The bird is found from northern British Columbia in Canada through the United States and Mexico to Costa Rica. It is also found on islands in the West Indies.

In flight, this bird looks like a flying cigar with long slender curved wings. The plumage is mostly a sooty dark gray. There is some contrast between the upper and lower wing. The shoulders are much darker in color than the remaining portion of the wing. They also have short slightly forked tails.

Their breeding habitat is frequently associated with water. The birds most often nest on high cliff faces, either above the ocean surf or behind or next to waterfalls. The nest is made of twigs and moss glued together with mud. The will also use ferns and seaweed if available. The females usually lay 1 egg, sometimes 2, and incubation lasts 23-27 days. Young are fed usually once a day by both parents, most often at dusk.

These birds do migrate out of North America after the breeding season. It remains unclear where most of the birds spend the winter, although it appears some of the swifts in the West Indies remain as year round residents. They are one of the last migrants to appear, often seen migrating in mid-June to early July. They also migrate in large flocks.

These birds live on the wing, foraging in flight. They eat flying insects, primarily flying ants and beetles. They usually feed in groups, flying closely together.

[edit] References

BirdLife International (2004). Cypseloides niger. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 12 May 2006. Database entry includes justification for why this species is of least concern