Cave Swiftlet

Cave Swiftlet

Collocalia linchi

Silhouette: Aviceda (vectorized by T. Michael Keesey) · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability ~90% · Very likely
at Jakarta

In 3 days >90%

1,512 Verified sightings at Jakarta
1,058 In 1 park From 2019 to 2026
December Best month
🌅 Crepuscular When it's spotted

About the Cave Swiftlet

The cave swiftlet or linchi swiftlet (Collocalia linchi) is a species of swift in the family Apodidae. It is found on the Indonesia islands of Sumatra, Java and Bali. It is a woodland species and nests in caves. The Bornean swiftlet was considered a subspecies, but is now usually considered distinct.

The cave swiftlet was described by the naturalists Thomas Horsfield and Frederic Moore in 1854 under the present binomial name Collocalia linchi. The specific epithet linchi is the Javanese word for a swiftlet. There are four recognised subspecies:

This bird is shiny blackish-brown above with a greenish gloss, including its rump; sometimes looks black and hooded. Chest black; belly to flanks pale grey with fine black speckles at margins. Wing tips are rounded; underwing is black. Tail black, rounded with shallow notch but lacking the white specks found in the very similar glossy swiftlet... Wikipedia →

Sounds

Call1:08

Indonesia · 2001

© Jelle Scharringa · XC777099 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Bali Barat National Park 🇮🇩 Indonesia
~70%

More parks will be added in future updates.

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Yogyakarta 🇮🇩 Indonesia
~90%
2 Jakarta 🇮🇩 Indonesia
~90%
3 Denpasar 🇮🇩 Indonesia
~80%
4 Tasikmalaya 🇮🇩 Indonesia
~80%
5 Malang 🇮🇩 Indonesia
~50%
6 Semarang 🇮🇩 Indonesia
~50%
7 Bandung 🇮🇩 Indonesia
~40%
8 Surabaya 🇮🇩 Indonesia
~30%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Cave Swiftlet in Jakarta?

Very likely

About 90% of wildlife watchers report a Cave Swiftlet sighting in Jakarta on a given day, based on 1,512 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 2nd most-seen of the 138 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Cave Swiftlet in Jakarta?

March–May, July–September and November–December

In those months about 90% of wildlife watchers report a Cave Swiftlet in Jakarta on a given day, against about 80% in January–February, June and October, the lowest months.

What time of day is best to see a Cave Swiftlet?

Between 6 and 9 am

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Cave Swiftlet sightings with a recorded time, and about 6 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is most active around dawn and dusk.

Is Jakarta the best place to see a Cave Swiftlet?

Among the best

Of the 8 cities where we can rate Cave Swiftlet sightings, Jakarta ranks 2nd at about 90%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Yogyakarta (Indonesia, about 90%).

Which relatives of the Cave Swiftlet live in Jakarta?

Same family: Apodidae

The closest relatives of the Cave Swiftlet that you can see in Jakarta (family Apodidae, Swifts) are House Swift (about 30%) and White-nest Swiftlet (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.

Where does the Cave Swiftlet sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Cave Swiftlet is recorded against all the birds logged in Jakarta (1,512 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.

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