White-naped Swift

Open encyclopedia reference

The white-naped swift (Streptoprocne semicollaris) is the largest representative of the swift family in the New World and one of the two largest species in the world. Only the purple needletail of Asia may be slightly larger. This bird is found principally in western and central Mexico, with one record on the Guatemalan border. This species is essentially a bird of wild highland landscapes, where it favors cliff faces, deep river gorges and high crags. Its main habitats are pine-oak forests, tropical deciduous forests and second-growth scrub. This swift is usually found at an elevation of 1,500 to 3,000 m (4,900 to 9,800 ft) and, much more rarely, down to sea level. The white-naped swift is huge for a swift, measuring 20.5–25 cm (8.1–9.8 in) long, being some 20% larger than its more common and much more widespread cousin, the white-collared swift. Weight in the species can vary from 115 to 225 g (4.1 to 7.9 oz) with a reported average weight of 175 g (6.2 oz).

Wikipedia contributors, White-naped swift; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T06:37:05.658384+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.

Identity & source status

Scientific name

Streptoprocne semicollaris (DeSaussure, 1859)

Name authority

(DeSaussure, 1859)

Common name

White-naped Swift

Rank

species

Accepted status

accepted

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Aves

Order

Apodiformes

Family

Apodidae

Genus

Streptoprocne

Extinction status

Recorded extant

Classification family tree

Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.

1. domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
2. kingdomAnimalia
3. phylumChordata
4. subphylumVertebrata
5. infraphylumGnathostomata
6. parvphylumOsteichthyes
7. megaclassTetrapoda
8. classAves
9. orderApodiformes
10. familyApodidae
11. subfamilyCypseloidinae
12. genusStreptoprocne Oberholser, 1906
13. speciesStreptoprocne semicollaris (DeSaussure, 1859)

Close classified relatives

These entries share the source’s genus, Streptoprocne. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.

Browse 90 records assigned to Apodidae.

Names & synonyms

Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.

Documented distribution

Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.

Source literature & publication evidence

References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.

1. https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=554942 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references

Origins, evidence & remaining research

Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.

Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.

Dataset citation & attribution

This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11

Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.

Stable key: col:52YVY. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.