Sick's Swift

About the Sick's Swift

Sick's swift (Chaetura meridionalis) is a species of swift in the family Apodidae. It was previously considered conspecific with the smaller ashy-tailed swift, but a study published in 1997 found that Sick's swift was closer to the chimney swift. The English name commemorates the German-born ornithologist Helmut Sick who studied South American birds. It is a migratory species that breeds in central South America and overwinters in northern South America. The IUCN has listed it as being of "Least Concern".

Sick's swift was formally described in 1907 by the Austrian ornithologist Carl Eduard Hellmayr from specimens collected in the Santiago del Estero Province of northern Argentina. Hellmayr considered it to be a subspecies of the ashy-tailed swift and coined the trinomial name Chaetura andrei meridionalis. The specific epithet is a Latin word meaning "southern". Based on a study by the ornithologist Manuel Marín, Sick's swift is now considered to be separate from the ashy-tailed swift and has been elevated to species status. The English name commemorates the German-born ornithologist, Helmut Sick, who studied Brazilian birdlife.

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