Common Swift
Common SwiftCommon SwiftCommon SwiftCommon Swift

Common Swift

Apus apus

Silhouette: Ferran Sayol · PhyloPic

Least ConcernNear ThreatenedVulnerableEndangeredCritically Endangered
Daily sighting probability ~20% · Possible
at Białowieża National Park
187 Verified sightings at Białowieża National Park From 2019 to 2026
12,486 Verified sightings across all 78 parks From 2019 to 2026
June Best month highest sighting rate
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted during daytime hours (6am–6pm)

About the Common Swift

The common swift (Apus apus) is a medium-sized bird, superficially similar to the barn swallow or house martin but somewhat larger, though not stemming from those passerine species, being in the order Apodiformes. The resemblances between the groups are due to convergent evolution, reflecting similar contextual development. The swifts' nearest relatives are the New World hummingbirds and the Southeast Asian treeswifts.

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"). 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 settle voluntarily on the ground where they would be vulnerable to accidents and predation, and non-breeding individuals may spend up to ten months in continuous flight.

The common swift was one of the many species described by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1758 in the tenth edition of his Systema Naturae. He introduced the binomial name Hirundo apus. The current genus Apus was erected by the Italian naturalist... Wikipedia →

Global Distribution

Warmer areas are where this animal is recorded most often.

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Cévennes National Park 🇫🇷 France
~40%
2 Vanoise National Park 🇫🇷 France
~30%
3 Gauja National Park 🇱🇻 Latvia
~30%
4 Tatra National Park 🇸🇰 Slovakia
~30%
5 Aigüestortes National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
~30%
6 Picos de Europa National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
~20%
7 Sierra Nevada National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
~20%
8 Ecrins National Park 🇫🇷 France
~20%
9 Ordesa y Monte Perdido National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
~20%
10 Pyrénées National Park 🇫🇷 France
~20%
11 Cairngorms National Park 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
~20%
12 Sierra de Guadarrama National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
~20%
13 Monfragüe National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
~20%
14 Białowieża National Park 🇵🇱 Poland
~20%
15 Biebrza National Park 🇵🇱 Poland
~20%
16 Mercantour National Park 🇫🇷 France
~20%
17 Doñana National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
~10%
18 Snowdonia National Park 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
~10%
19 Camargue 🇫🇷 France
~10%
20 Wadden Sea National Park 🇩🇪 Germany
~10%
21 Bavarian Forest National Park 🇩🇪 Germany
~10%
22 Hohe Tauern National Park 🇦🇹 Austria
~10%
23 Fertő-Hanság National Park 🇭🇺 Hungary
~10%
24 Gobi Gurvansaikhan National Park 🇲🇳 Mongolia
~10%
25 Waterberg Plateau Park 🇳🇦 Namibia
~10%
26 Triglav National Park 🇸🇮 Slovenia
~10%
27 Etosha National Park 🇳🇦 Namibia
~10%
28 Kafue National Park 🇿🇲 Zambia
~10%
29 Mana Pools National Park 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe
~10%
30 Tsavo West National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
~10%
31 Ruaha National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
<5%
32 Arusha National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
<5%
33 Hortobágy National Park 🇭🇺 Hungary
<5%
34 Liwonde National Park 🇲🇼 Malawi
<5%
35 Lake Nakuru National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
<5%
36 Ngorongoro Conservation Area 🇹🇿 Tanzania
<5%
37 Kiskunság National Park 🇭🇺 Hungary
<5%
38 Tsavo East National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
<5%
39 Serengeti National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
<5%
40 Plitvice Lakes National Park 🇭🇷 Croatia
<5%
41 Samburu National Reserve 🇰🇪 Kenya
<5%
42 Mkomazi National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
<5%
43 Tarangire National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
<5%
44 Murchison Falls National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
<5%
45 Niokolo-Koba National Park 🇸🇳 Senegal
<5%
46 Chobe National Park 🇧🇼 Botswana
<5%
47 Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
<5%
48 Moremi Game Reserve 🇧🇼 Botswana
<5%
49 Hwange National Park 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe
<5%
50 Kidepo Valley National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
<5%
51 Addo Elephant National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
<5%
52 Amboseli National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
<5%
53 Queen Elizabeth National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
<5%
54 Nairobi National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
<5%
55 South Luangwa National Park 🇿🇲 Zambia
<5%
56 Virunga National Park 🇨🇩 Democratic Republic of the Congo
<5%
57 Garden Route National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
<5%
58 Kruger National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
<5%
59 Bwindi Impenetrable National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
<5%
60 Kibale National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
<5%
61 Aberdare National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
<5%
62 Namib-Naukluft National Park 🇳🇦 Namibia
<5%
63 Lake Mburo National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
<5%
64 iSimangaliso Wetland Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
<5%
65 Masai Mara National Reserve 🇰🇪 Kenya
<5%
66 Nyungwe National Park 🇷🇼 Rwanda
<5%
67 Table Mountain National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
<5%
68 Meru National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
Insufficient data
69 Mikumi National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
Insufficient data
70 Golden Gate Highlands National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
Insufficient data
71 Lake Manyara National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
Insufficient data
72 Pilanesberg National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
Insufficient data
73 Lower Zambezi National Park 🇿🇲 Zambia
Insufficient data
74 Akagera National Park 🇷🇼 Rwanda
Insufficient data
75 Gonarezhou National Park 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe
Insufficient data
76 Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
Insufficient data
77 Volcanoes National Park 🇷🇼 Rwanda
Insufficient data
78 Vatnajokull National Park 🇮🇸 Iceland
Insufficient data

Quick answers

What are the chances of seeing a Common Swift in Białowieża National Park?

About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Common Swift sighting in Białowieża National Park, based on 187 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data.

When is the best time to see Common Swift in Białowieża National Park?

June has the highest sighting rate for Common Swift in Białowieża National Park in our monthly data.

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