Brown-backed Needletail (Hirundapus giganteus)

Other Names (World)
Brown-backed Needletail, Brown Needletail, Giant Brown Needletail, Giant Brown Needletail, Brown Spinetailed Swift, Brown Spinetail, Brown-throated Spinetailed Swift, Brown-throated Spinetail

Family
Apodidae (Swifts)

Size
21 - 25 cm

First Described (Guide)
(Temminck, 1825)

Habitat
Subtropical and tropical lowland and montane moist forest. From sea-level - 1,800 m.

Range (Guide)

Bangladesh, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines (B), Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam.

Rarity Status
Currently this species is not classified as a rarity in this country OR information has not been updated.

Population
Estimated population is unknown (2010).

Status LC
For more information see BirdLife International Species Factsheet.

Habits
Gregarious, usually in small groups.

Food
Insects.

Voice
An insect-like trill.

Xeno-Canto Sound Files

Brown-backed Needletail (Hirundapus giganteus) [XC97294]
by id from Seima Biodiversity Conservation Area - Logpond at HQ, Cambodia (flight call)

Nest
A crevice of a cliff face.

Subspecies
Genus formerly merged into Chaetura. Forms superspecies with Purple Needletail (Hirundapus celebensis), with which in past sometimes considered conspecific. A single specimen from western Java, previously separated as form ernsti and variously treated as a distinct species or a subspecies of present species, now synonymized with subspecies cochinchinensis of Silver-backed Needletail (Hirundapus cochinchinensis).

The following 2 subspecies are recognised:

indicus (Hume, 1873) - South-western India and Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh eastern into south-eastern Asia, and Andaman Is.
giganteus (Temminck, 1825) - Malay Peninsula, Greater Sundas and Palawan (south-western Philippines).

References
See References.

Files:

JPG files for Brown-backed Needletail (Hirundapus giganteus) - 10 files

More Information

BirdLife International

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BirdLife International Species Factsheet.

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