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The family name, Apodidae, is derived from the Greek ἄπους (ápous), meaning "footless", a reference to the small, weak legs of these most aerial of birds. [ 2 ] [ 3 ] The tradition of depicting swifts without feet continued into the Middle Ages, as seen in the heraldic martlet .
Its scientific name Apus is Latin for a swift, thought by the ancients to be a type of swallow with no feet (from Ancient Greek α, a, "without", and πούς, pous, "foot"). [3] Swifts have very short legs which they use primarily for clinging to vertical surfaces (hence the German name Mauersegler, literally meaning "wall-glider"). They never ...
Sooty swift (Cypseloides fumigatus) Rothschild's swift (Cypseloides rothschildi) American black swift (Cypseloides niger) White-chested swift (Cypseloides lemosi) Great dusky swift (Cypseloides senex) Genus Streptoprocne; Tepui swift (Streptoprocne phelpsi) Chestnut-collared swift (Streptoprocne rutila) White-collared swift (Streptoprocne zonaris)
The bird genus Apus comprise some of the Old World members of the family Apodidae, commonly known as swifts.. They are among the fastest birds in the world. They resemble swallows, to which they are not related, but have shorter tails and sickle-shaped wings.
The chimney swift's genus name, Chaetura, is a combination of two Ancient Greek words: chaite, which means "bristle" or "spine", and oura which means "tail". This is an apt description of the bird's tail, as the shafts of all ten tail feathers ( rectrices ) end in sharp, protruding points. [ 10 ]
In this list of birds by common name 11,278 extant and recently extinct (since 1500) bird species are recognised. [1] Species marked with a "†" are extinct. Contents
The plain swift (Apus unicolor) is a medium-sized swift. Although this bird is superficially similar to a barn swallow or house martin , it is not related to those passerine species. The resemblances between the groups are due to convergent evolution reflecting similar life styles.
This is a small swift, even compared to other Chaetura species, at 10.7 to 11.2 cm (4.2 to 4.4 in) long and weighing 18 g (0.63 oz). The northern populations are slightly larger at 11.5 cm (4.5 in), probably according to the Bergmann's Rule and/or migration requirements.