White-throated Needletail

1. Clean white throat patch contrasting with a dark, barrel-shaped body

2. Pale gray back with a subtle bluish gloss in good light

3. Powerful, gliding flight with less erratic movement than other swifts

These swifts are almost exclusively aerial outside the breeding season, rarely perching except when nesting in their Asian breeding grounds. They feed on flying insects, including beetles, flies, bees, and moths, caught in flight. White-throated Needletails are highly social, often forming large flocks numbering in the thousands while in Australia. They do not breed in Australia but undertake one of the longest migratory journeys, traveling between breeding grounds in Siberia, Japan, and China and non-breeding areas in Southeast Asia and Australia`.`

White-throated Needletails are present in Australia from September/October to March/April, peaking in numbers from December to March. They are most often seen soaring at great heights, especially above wooded areas, mountain ridges, and during stormy weather, when they may descend to lower altitudes to feed on insects. Their range covers eastern and southeastern Australia, including Tasmania, and they are especially abundant in upland areas like the Snowy Mountains. Listen for their high-pitched, sharp calls and twittering when they are overhead.