Aeronautes andecolus
Silhouette: Aviceda (vectorized by T. Michael Keesey) · PhyloPic
In 3 days <5% in a week ~10%
The Andean swift (Aeronautes andecolus) is a species of bird in subfamily Apodinae of the swift family Apodidae. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, and Peru. The Andean swift was at one time placed in genus Micropus which was later merged into Aeronautes, and also in genus Apus from which it was split.
The Andean swift is about 14 cm (5.5 in) long. It has sharply pointed wings and a long deeply forked tail. The sexes are alike. Adults of the nominate subspecies have mostly black upperparts with a white collar and band on the rump. Their face and underparts are mostly white to off-white with mottled buff on the flanks and vent. Its tail is shorter and less deeply forked, its white plumage is purer, and it has darker undertail coverts.
Subspecies A. a. parvulus of the Andean swift is the northernmost; it is found on the western... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Amboró National Park | 🇧🇴 Bolivia | |
| 2 | Lauca National Park | 🇨🇱 Chile |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report an Andean Swift sighting in Arequipa on a given day, based on 11 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 54th most-seen of the 61 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to under 5%, and over a week to about 10%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February and May
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report an Andean Swift in Arequipa on a given day, against under 5% in March–April and June–January, the lowest months. Those are among Arequipa's wettest months, with about 25 mm of rain a month against almost none in June.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Andean Swift sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
2nd of 2
Of the 2 cities where we can rate Andean Swift sightings, Arequipa ranks 2nd at under 5%. The best odds are in La Paz (Bolivia, about 30%).
Same order: Apodiformes
The closest relatives of the Andean Swift that you can see in Arequipa (order Apodiformes, Swifts and Hummingbirds) are Oasis Hummingbird (about 80%), Peruvian Sheartail (about 50%) and Purple-collared Woodstar (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Andean Swift is recorded against all the birds logged in Arequipa (11 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
