Plain Swift

Plain Swift flying over a tree in the distance.
Plain Swift, Trayecto Ferry Lanzarote terminus, Canarias, Spain, July 29, 2023
Canon EOS R5 with Canon 100-500 mm L-series lens with 1.4x Teleconverter; 700 mm; ISO-2500; f/10; 1/500 sec. +0.7 Exposure bias.

This page is for the Plain Swift (Apus unicolor). This one was very far away. I cannot make a positive identification from this shot, but our guide said there were Plain Swifts and Common House Martins flying around the trees in the distance. This was the only “swift shaped” bird and the martin was easier to identify. So by the process of elimination, this bird was the only one left that was the correct size, shape, and flight patterns.

Plain Swift gliding among the buildings next to the Arrecife Marina coast.
Plain Swift, Arrecife Marina, Mirador del Rio, Lanzarote, Canarias, Spain, July 30, 2023
Canon EOS R5 with Canon 100-500 mm L-series lens with 1.4x Teleconverter; 700 mm; ISO-250; f/11; 1/1000 sec.
Plain Swift flying overhead against a grey sky.
Plain Swift, Mirador de Jardina, Tenerife, Spain, August 1, 2023
Canon EOS R5 with Canon 100-500 mm L-series lens with 1.4x Teleconverter; 700 mm; ISO-400; f/11; 1/2000 sec.
Plain Swift high overhead about to make a turn.
Plain Swift, Barranco de Ruiz, Tenerife, Spain, August 2, 2023
Canon EOS R5 with Canon 100-500 mm L-series lens with 1.4x Teleconverter; 700 mm; ISO-160; f/10; 1/800 sec. -0.3 exposure bias
Plain Swift flying overhead.
Plain Swift, Las Chaficas, Tenerife, Canarias, Spain, August 3, 2023
Canon EOS R5 with Canon 100-500 mm L-series lens with 1.4x Teleconverter; 700 mm; ISO-1000; f/11; 1/4000 sec. -0.3 exposure bias