Common or pallid swifts? Location: Bulgaria (1 Viewer)

[petar1]

Hi guys!

Are these swifts common or pallid? I am seeing them every year flying around my flat. It seems they are nesting under the gutter.

Date: 08 July, 2015
Location: Bulgaria

Thank you,
Petar

 

[Nutcracker]

Large white throats, dark eye patch, hint of scaling on body, and paler inner primaries (pic 3) all suggest Pallid to me.

What time do they stay until in autumn? If still present in mid-late Sept or Oct, then Pallid for sure.

 

[petar1]

They stayed till November here.

 

[Nutcracker]

Got to be Pallid, that late!

 

[BirdingRob]

I agree with pallid swift. The Collins guide is counter-productive in this. The distribution map doesn't have pallid swift in Bulgaria at all yet is it a known (but fairly rare) breeder.

 

[Nutcracker]

The Collins guide is counter-productive in this. The distribution map doesn't have pallid swift in Bulgaria at all yet is it a known (but fairly rare) breeder.

Hadn't noticed the Collins map was so out-of-date! Pallids breed widely, and fairly commonly, in Bulgaria now, and in some surprising locations. The most remarkable is on the Musala mountain chalet at 2715m altitude, where they can be seen taking food in to 2nd brood chicks in heavy snow in late October :eek!:

A good spot for casual tourist visitors to Bulgaria is the Rila Monastery; there's 20-30 pairs breeding there, very easy to watch at eye level from the upper balconies.

 

[Scridifer]

A good spot for casual tourist visitors to Bulgaria is the Rila Monastery; there's 20-30 pairs breeding there, very easy to watch at eye level from the upper balconies.

Thanks for the tip! Been meaning to visit Rila for ages, will definitely make a trip this Summer.

 

[John Cantelo]

Perhaps this little aide memoir I drew a few weeks back might help .....

 

[Nutcracker]

Perhaps this little aide memoir I drew a few weeks back might help .....

Nice one! Whole pic looks a bit pale on my screen though (i.e., both Pallid and Common lighter than they should be)? Also the note "beware Commons with full crops" should be "... full throat pouches" :t:

 

[John Cantelo]

Nice one! Whole pic looks a bit pale on my screen though (i.e., both Pallid and Common lighter than they should be)? Also the note "beware Commons with full crops" should be "... full throat pouches" :t:

The original is darker, but using coloured pencils (for convoluted reasonsI can't use paint at the moment) seems to make the scan come out too light. Adjusting the scanner to make it darker means a loss of detail. Mind you, at the right angle and in strong light both can look that pale. Thanks for the crops/pouches detail, I never knew there was a difference!

 

[Scridifer]

Perhaps this little aide memoir I drew a few weeks back might help .....

Very useful indeed! Thanks John.

Chris

 

[Nutcracker]

Thanks for the crops/pouches detail, I never knew there was a difference!

The crop is further down into the body - think of a raptor with a full crop, the bulge is in the upper breast, not the throat. The pouch is under the tongue, hence the technical term 'sublingual pouch', as also found in e.g. jays for carrying acorns :t:

Pic: http://www.pigeon.psy.tufts.edu/asc/Balda/Used%20Images/sublingual_pouch_large.png

 

[Jeff Hopkins]

Perhaps this little aide memoir I drew a few weeks back might help .....

Excellent "aide memoir" indeed!

 

[KenM]

On the same theme...a bit pale for Apus apus?

 

[Onemis]

I agree with pallid swift. The Collins guide is counter-productive in this. The distribution map doesn't have pallid swift in Bulgaria at all yet is it a known (but fairly rare) breeder.

The Pallid Swift is a very common breeder in Southern Bulgaria, especially in the mountains, but also forms mixed colonies with Common Swifts in the cities, such exist in Sofia for example. Recently it has been confirmed from several towns in Northern Bulgaria as far north as Silistra on the Danube River. Last year it was reported from Romania and I assume they will find it breeding in some of the towns along the Bulgarian border soon.

 

[stuartvine]

Perhaps this little aide memoir I drew a few weeks back might help .....

Very useful - ta