Pallid Swift
Apus pallidus

The pallid swift is a swift. Swifts have very short legs which they use only for clinging to vertical surfaces. The genus name Apus is Latin for a swift, thought by the ancients to be a type of swallow with no feet, and pallidus is Latin for "pale". Like other swifts they never settle voluntarily on the ground, but spend most of their lives in the air, living on the insects they catch in their beaks. They drink on the wing. Source
Where it is now
In the last 8 weeks this bird was recorded 173 times across 11 areas (each area is a 5 degree square).
See the Pallid Swift on the live map
Arrival dates
The week it was first heard regularly in each region, after at least six weeks away. Dates differ from south to north, so a region has a range.
| Region | First arrival | Last arrival | Typical peak | Areas |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Europe | 30 March 2026 | 14 September 2026 | 13 July 2026 | 4 |
Figures are effort corrected and come from automatic sound identification, which makes mistakes. How this is measured and how it compares with human observers.