🐦

Brown-backed Needletail

Hirundapus giganteus

Least Concern
Rentang Sayap
40,6 cm
Berat
145,0 g
Famili
Apodidae
Ordo
Caprimulgiformes
On this page

Tentang

A very large needletail swift (22-25 cm), the largest swift in Asia. Dark brown plumage with a paler brown back. Spine-tipped tail. Found in montane forests from India to Southeast Asia. Aerial insectivore with powerful flight. Often seen soaring over mountain ridges.

Physical Description

Measurement Value Imperial
Rentang Sayap 40,6 cm 16.0 in
Berat 145,0 g 5.11 oz

Identifikasi

Bulu

Very large; dark brown upperparts with bronze gloss; no pale back saddle unlike congeners; white throat patch; white undertail coverts; short spiny tail; largest Hirundapus; brown rather than black overall tone with no contrasting white back patch.

Habitat & Range

Rentang Geografis

Found from India and Sri Lanka through Southeast Asia to Borneo and the Philippines. Resident in lowland and hill forest, soaring over ridges.

Diet & Feeding

Aerial insectivore feeding on tiny flies, beetles, and ballooning spiders in rapid powerful aerial pursuit.

Status Konservasi

Least Concern
IUCN Red List

Perilaku & Berkembang Biak

Bersarang

Nest type: SC.

Ukuran Sarang

3-5

Suara

Kicauan

Rough, buzzy chatter with intermittent higher squeaks; coarse twittering delivered continuously throughout aerial foraging.

Taksonomi

Kingdom Animalia
Phylum Chordata
Class Aves
Ordo Caprimulgiformes (Nightjars & Swifts)
Famili Apodidae (Swifts)
Genus Hirundapus
Spesies Hirundapus giganteus

Distribution

Brown-backed Needletail has been recorded in 1 countries.

{# Distribution Map — simplified SVG world map with highlighted countries. Expects `country_codes` variable: list of ISO alpha-2 codes (e.g. ["US", "CA", "MX"]). Uses Alpine.js to toggle classes on country paths. #}
Hadir Not recorded
{# Simplified country/region shapes — major landmasses with ISO alpha-2 data attributes. These are simplified polygon representations for visual distribution display. #}

countries highlighted

External Databases

Pertanyaan yang Sering Diajukan

What does the Brown-backed Needletail eat?
Aerial insectivore feeding on tiny flies, beetles, and ballooning spiders in rapid powerful aerial pursuit.
Where does the Brown-backed Needletail live?
Found from India and Sri Lanka through Southeast Asia to Borneo and the Philippines. Resident in lowland and hill forest, soaring over ridges.
Is the Brown-backed Needletail endangered?
The Brown-backed Needletail has a conservation status of Least Concern.
How does the Brown-backed Needletail nest?
Nest type: SC.
What does the Brown-backed Needletail sound like?
Rough, buzzy chatter with intermittent higher squeaks; coarse twittering delivered continuously throughout aerial foraging.
How big is the Brown-backed Needletail?
The Brown-backed Needletail has a wingspan of 40.6 cm, weight of 145.0 g.
What order and family does the Brown-backed Needletail belong to?
The Brown-backed Needletail (Hirundapus giganteus) belongs to the order Caprimulgiformes and the family Apodidae.

Similar Birds

Other species in the Apodidae family

Bandingkan

Explore More

Explore the Nature FYI Family