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Location: Downtown San Diego
Date: 2003-03-01
Lens: Canon 400mm F5.6
Date: 2003-03-01
Lens: Canon 400mm F5.6
Vaux's Swift
Chaetura vauxi
DescriptionSwifts have very short legs that allow them to perch on vertical surfaces. You will almost never see a swift perched horizontally. Their scientific family name means "without feet".
Dark gray upperparts. Whitish throat. Pale gray breast, rump and underwings. Long, stiff, crescent-shaped wings. Short, squared off tail. Small black bill. Juvenile similar to adult. Sexes similar. 4.5 inches in length.
Forests, woodlands, lakes, and towns.
Nesting3-5 white eggs with brown spots. The eggs have a 18-20 day incubation period. Fledging occurs in 28 days. The nest is bunch of small sticks glued together with saliva. It is usually built on the inside of a hollow tree.
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