Silver-backed Needletail

The silver-backed needletail is a large, powerful swift about 19–22 cm long. It has a long-winged, cigar-shaped dark-brown body with blue gloss, a pale silvery-grey saddle, an ill-defined grey-brown throat and a white horseshoe across the rear flanks and undertail coverts. The square tail ends in short projecting spines that are usually visible only at close range. Its pale saddle and throat help separate it from similar brown-backed and white-throated needletails (Hong Kong Bird Watching Society; Bird Society of Singapore).

It breeds from Nepal and northeastern India through northern Myanmar and southern China to Taiwan, wintering in Thailand, the Malay Peninsula, Sumatra and western Java. Migrating flocks forage aerially over forest, woodland, fish ponds, marshes, farmland and grassy hills, taking flying insects and sometimes mixing with other swifts. Birds normally pass quickly but may remain where feeding conditions are favourable. Regional records show concentrated spring passage and occasional large flocks during unsettled weather (Hong Kong Bird Watching Society; Taiwan Ministry of Agriculture bird account).