Frequently asked questions (FAQ)
These questions were taken from the guest book over the past few years. I will periodically update them as needed.

Q What is the difference between the Egyptian and the Syrian Swifts ?
A The Egyptian Swifts (ES) have 10 well defined groups. Each is unique with will defined markings. They collectively share a common marking of long body, wings, tail and short legs. The Syrian Swifts (SS) is the product of random crossing among the ES groups. Thus producing a breed that lacks the brilliant ES colors (drab in colors). They also lack the beak siting and posture.

Q where did the SS originate?
A They originated in Europe and not in Syria as the name imply. The misnomer spread to the rest of the West including the USA. Short and compacted bird with drab colors were dubbed SS. Long bird with loose feathers and more pronounced colors were claimed to be ES in Europe.

Q What are Swifts called in the Middle East?
A Neither the term SS nor ES is used around the Mideast. When found, pure ES are known as the Egyptian birds in that region. In Egypt the term is alien and many distinguish this breed from others by the naming them "Gohzar ".

Q What is the Swifts history in the West?
A They arrived in 1925 to England from Egypt. Egypt was the under the British occupation. The first documented account in the USA was noted when Sam Shadeed, a Syrian immigrant, brought along few ES among a variety of birds from that region, which was the inception of the Syrian-Lebanese breed in the USA.
It is of essence to mention that there is absolutely no difference between the Lebanese or Syrian birds. Both countries were under one flag until the end of the of world war two.

Q Where could I find more reference for the ES?
A The book of pigeon by "Levi" has a primitive picture of a "Gazgandi" and had it titled as ES. Another in the same book of an Otati by Sam Shadeed. There was hardly any worthwhile material covering the breed, in a book that covered a mass of breeds.
Three Egyptian Booklets in Arabic are in Egyptian libraries. I am using the latest issue for the standards.

Q Is it possible to have flying birds and still compete in a show?
A The limit for length for the flying bird is around 30 cm as compared to more than 32 cm or for a show bird. A show bird has a smaller head than a flying one. Their body tends to be fragile and many require foster parents early life. A good flying loft should maintain 80% of a show Quality and that fares well against many show birds. Anything below that will not make it in a show.
There is no show ES out of Egypt and what you see on our site is the closest you could get to view a show ES in the West.

Q What are the most important qualities that makes a bird win a show?
A At this point fanciers see the length and the bird size only and that reflects of judging. Now many interested fanciers are knowledgeable about the different groups and their corresponding colors. Little or no knowledge about the facial markings and the eye sign. Shows are subjective at this point and it will not change overnight, but the numbers are steadily increasing.

Q What are the difference between the Egyptian and the European Standards?
A The European, namely the British and the German have one standard for the entire ES groups. Not only you are dealing with ten groups, but many sub groups as well.
The European have mixed the Rehanis, Azrak Katifa (Blue velvets) and Otatis and lumped them all under the ES? You can't judge a pussycat under the same standards of a lion. One might argue they both come from the "feline" family!. In short they are dead wrong and confusing at best.

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