#0995 · 🐦 birds

Alpine Swift

🇳🇱 Alpengierzwaluw ·Tachymarptis melba

LCleast concern 🐦 Birds 📍 in the Netherlands

10 photos from iNaturalist (Creative Commons) · credits & licences

what is it?

The Alpine swift ( Tachymarptis melba ) formerly Apus melba , is a species of swift. The genus name is from the Ancient Greek takhus , "fast", and marptis , "seizer". The specific melba has no known explanation.

base stats

NL sightings 1iNaturalist, research grade
worldwide 7,541iNaturalist observations
weight 96 gadult, up to
threat LCleast concern

Bars compare against all animals on log scales: up to 300,000 Dutch and 600,000 worldwide sightings (the most-seen species), 150 t (blue whale), 30 m and 400 years (Greenland shark).

fun facts

Spotted 1 times in the Netherlands on iNaturalist.
7,541 observations worldwide on iNaturalist.
Weighs only about 96 g.
Scientifically named in 1758 (268 years ago).

fact sheet

English: Alpine Swift
Nederlands: Alpengierzwaluw
scientific name: Tachymarptis melba
class: Aves
order: Apodiformes
family: Apodidae
IUCN Red List: LC · least concern
sightings in NL: 1
sightings in Europe: 4,799
sightings worldwide: 7,541
GBIF records in NL: 1,146
weight: 96 g
length: —
lifespan: —
named: 1758

IUCN in Dutch: niet bedreigd. Blank means the sources don't say.

relatives· Apodidae

Sources: iNaturalist taxon 72516, Wikidata Q321267, GBIF 2477411, Wikipedia (EN), Wikipedia (NL). Intro text from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-24.