White-throated Needletail

Hirundapus caudacutus (Latham, 1801)

≈22 cmLength96 gWeight

This large, stout, barrel-shaped swift has a single white throat patch on a gray-brown body.

Most records: Australia, China, Thailand

Least Concern

How to identify

Field marks

White throat
White patches extend from the base of the tail to the flanks
Rest of plumage gray-brown
Tail tip has spine-like structures; tail not forked

Where and when it's recorded

White-throated Needletail has been recorded at 589 of the 8,171 birding hotspots we track, in 27 countries and regions.

Records by month Southern Hemisphere

Where it's recorded most

Kenting NP – Sheding Lingxiao Pavilion (Raptors Observation Spot)Taiwan (China)1,150 records
Khao Dinsor (Khao Dinso) / Chumphon Raptor CenterThailand409 records
Kumbartcho SanctuaryAustralia301 records

More places

Oxley Creek CommonAustralia284 records
Lake Samsonvale – Golds Scrub LaneAustralia247 records
Jiulongshan National Forest ParkChina221 records
O'Reilly's Rainforest RetreatAustralia190 records
Wawu Mountain – Summit [2800m]China171 records
Tinchi Tamba Wetlands ReserveAustralia166 records
Anstead Bushland ReserveAustralia154 records

Countries and regions with the most records

Australia China Thailand Bhutan Singapore Indonesia South Korea Malaysia

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

The white-throated needletail (Hirundapus caudacutus), also known as the needle-tailed swift or spine-tailed swift, is a large swift in the genus Hirundapus. It is reputed to reach speeds of up to 170 km/h (110 mph) in horizontal flight, but this is unverified because the methods used to measure its speed have not been published.

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

Questions

How big is the White-throated Needletail?

The White-throated Needletail is about ≈22 cm long and weighs around 96 g.

Where does the White-throated Needletail live?

Its breeding range: Palearctic: Himalayas from Pakistan to southern China and central Siberia to northeastern Russia and Japan. It is most often recorded in Australia, China and Thailand.