Gray-rumped Swift

Chaetura cinereiventris

The grey-rumped swift (Chaetura cinereiventris) is a small swift.

This species breeds in hill forests from Nicaragua south to Peru, Brazil and northern Argentina, and Grenada, Trinidad and Tobago. The nest is a half saucer of twigs glued to the inside of a tree hole, chimney or similar shaded location with saliva.

The grey-rumped swift is 11.5 cm long and weighs 15 g. The upperparts are black with a grey triangular band across the rump, and the underparts are slate grey. It has a long black-grey tail.

The grey-rumped swift feeds in flight on flying insects. It is often low over roads or clearings in the morning or evening, rising high above the forest, often with other swifts, in the middle of the day.

The grey-rumped swift has a chittering call.