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The White-rumped Swift (Apus caffer) is a small swift. Although this bird is superficially similar to a House Martin, it is completely unrelated to that passerine species. The resemblances between the swallows and swifts are due to convergent evolution reflecting similar life styles.

Swifts have very short legs that they use only for clinging to vertical surfaces. They never settle voluntarily on the ground, and spend most of their lives in the air, feeding on insects that they catch in their beaks. They drink on the wing.

White-rumped Swifts breed in much of sub-Saharan Africa, and have expanded into Morocco and southern SpainThe Kingdom of Spain is a country located in the southwest of Europe. It shares the Iberian Peninsula with Portugal, Gibraltar and Andorra. To the northeast, along the Pyrenees mountain range, it borders France and the tiny principality of Andorra. It inc. The populations in Spain, Morocco and the south of Africa are migratoryLong-distance land bird migration Many species of land birds migrate very long distances, the most common pattern being for birds to breed in the temperate or arctic northern hemisphere and winter in warmer regions, often in the tropics or the southern he, although their wintering grounds are not definitively known. Birds in tropical Africa are resident apart from seasonal movements.

This species appropriates the nests of Little SwiftLittle Swift : Animalia : Chordata : Aves : Apodiformes : Apodidae Apus affinis Binomial name Apus affinis ( Gray,JE, 1830) The Little Swift Apus affinis , or House Swift is a small bird, superficially similar to a Barn Swallow or House Martin. It is, hows and those swallows which build retort-shaped nests. In Europe and north Africa, this usually means the Red-rumped SwallowRed-rumped Swallow : Animalia : Chordata : Aves : Passeriformes : Hirundinidae Hirundo daurica Binomial name Hirundo daurica Linnaeus, 1771 The Red-rumped Swallow Hirundo daurica is a small passerine bird in the swallow family. It breeds in open hilly cou, but south of the Sahara other species like Wire-tailed SwallowWire-tailed Swallow : Animalia : Chordata : Aves : Passeriformes : Hirundinidae Hirundo smithii Binomial name Hirundo smithii Leach, 1818 The Wire-tailed Swallow Hirundo smithii is a small passerine bird in the swallow family. Swallows are somewhat simila are also parasitised. The original owners of the nests are driven away, or the White-rumps setlle in the nest and refuse to move. Once occupied, the nest is lined with feathers and saliva, and one or two eggs are laid.

The habitat of this species is dictated by that of its hosts, and is therefore normally man-made structures such as bridges and buildings.

This 14-15.5 cm long species has, like its relatives, a short forked tail and long swept-back wings that resemble a crescent or a boomerangA boomerang is a curved, usually wooden, device which is thrown. A boomerang spins as it flies through the air, and can travel long distances. A boomerang is designed to, when thrown correctly, fly a curved path to return to the person who threw it. To bo. It is entirely dark except for a pale throat patch and a narrow white rump. It lis similar to the closely related Little Swift, but is slimmer, darker and has a more forked tail and a narrower white rump.

This is a quiet species compared to Little Swift, but a twittering trill is sometimes given.