Short-tailed Swift
A species of New World Needle-tailed Swifts Scientific name : Chaetura brachyura Genus : New World Needle-tailed Swifts
Short-tailed Swift, A species of New World Needle-tailed Swifts
Botanical name: Chaetura brachyura
Genus: New World Needle-tailed Swifts
Content
Description General Info
Photo By Lars Petersson 
Description
The short-tailed swift is about 10.5 cm long, and weighs 20 g. It has long narrow wings, a robust body and a short tail. The sexes are similar. It is mainly black with a pale rump and tail. It can be distinguished from related species in its range, such as the band-rumped swift (C. spinicauda) or the gray-rumped swift (C. cinereiventris) by the lack of contrast between the rump and the tail, the latter being much darker in the other species. 
Size
10 cm
Nest Placement
Cavity
Feeding Habits
Short-tailed Swift primarily feed on flying insects, including winged ants and termites. They exhibit aerial hunting techniques, catching prey mid-flight predominantly around dusk. This species possesses specialized adaptations for an insectivorous diet.
Habitat
The short-tailed Swift is primarily found in lowland areas up to 1900 meters elevation, but is mostly seen below 900 meters, inhabiting secondary forests, tropical forest edges, and scrublands. This species is common along coastlines, particularly over mangroves, and is also adapted to arid landscapes like llanos, frequenting areas around human settlements and remnant forests.
Dite type
Insectivorous
General Info
Feeding Habits
Bird food type
Behavior
It is very gregarious and forms communal roosts when not breeding. Predation by bats at the nest sites has been suspected. The flight call is a rapid chittering sti-sti-stew-stew-stew.
Distribution Area
The swift is a common resident of Trinidad, Tobago, Grenada and Saint Vincent, and in tropical South America from Panama, Colombia and the Guianas south to Ecuador, Peru and Brazil; in Brazil, the entire Amazon Basin, excluding much of the southeastern Basin. It rarely occurs over 800 m ASL even in the hottest parts of its range and in mountainous or hilly terrain it inhabits, but has been recorded as high as 1,300 m ASL. It is found in a range of habitats including savanna, open woodland, and cultivation.
Photo By Lars Petersson 
Scientific Classification
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