Cook's Swift

Apus cooki (Harington, 1913)

≈18 cmLength39 gWeight

It is mostly black with a white rump and a green metallic gloss to the plumage.

Busiest months: February and December · Most records: Thailand, Myanmar (Burma), Malaysia

How to identify

Field marks

Mainly black with a white rump
Plumage with a green metallic gloss

Where and when it's recorded

Busiest months: February and December · Most records: Thailand, Myanmar (Burma), Malaysia

Cook's Swift has been recorded at 124 of the 8,276 birding hotspots we track, in 7 countries and regions.

Records by month Northern Hemisphere

Where it's recorded most

Doi Pha Hom Pok NP – Doi Lang (W), AKA Doi San JuThailand1,025 records
Doi Pha Hom Pok NP – Doi AngkhangThailand391 records
Doi Pha Hom Pok NP – Doi Lang (W) level part / "Oasis"Thailand273 records

More places

Doi Pha Hom Pok NP – Doi Lang (E)Thailand261 records
Doi Pha Hom Pok NP – Doi Angkhang Royal Agricultural StationThailand226 records
Doi Pha Hom Pok NP – Chinese Cemetery & dump on Doi AngkhangThailand202 records
Doi Pha Hom Pok NP – Doi Angkhang military base & campsiteThailand182 records
Doi Pha Hom Pok NP – Doi Lang (W) stakeout Mrs Hume's Pheasant [ARRIVE BEFORE SUNRISE & WAIT IN THE CAR ON THE LEFT SIDE OF THE RD.]Thailand175 records
Doi Inthanon NPThailand127 records
Doi Ang Kang – Ban Nor Lae Army CampMyanmar (Burma)90 records

Countries and regions with the most records

Thailand Myanmar (Burma)Malaysia Vietnam China Laos Cambodia

eBird records via GBIF up to 2024-12-31. A record means someone listed it; more records partly mean more birders, not more birds.

About

Cook's swift (Apus cooki) is a small bird, superficially similar to a house martin. It is, however, completely unrelated to those passerine species, since swifts are in the order Apodiformes. The resemblances between the groups are due to convergent evolution reflecting similar life styles.

Excerpt from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · authors · Read more on Wikipedia

Questions

How big is the Cook's Swift?

The Cook's Swift is about ≈18 cm long and weighs around 39 g.

Where does the Cook's Swift live?

Its breeding range: Oriental: lowland Myanmar, northern Thailand, Vietnam and Guangxi, China. It is most often recorded in Thailand, Myanmar (Burma) and Malaysia.