NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Silver-rumped Spinetail
Rhaphidura leucopygialis (Blyth, 1849)
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The silver-rumped spinetail or silver-rumped needletail (Rhaphidura leucopygialis, sometimes spelled Raphidura leucopygialis) is a species of swift in the family Apodidae.
It is found in Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, and Thailand.
Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests.
Research on the silver- Rumped spine tail has utilized facultative heterothermy, or even torpor, as a physiological mechanism to reduce its metabolic rate and conserve energy in its tropical environment.
Wikipedia contributors, Silver-rumped spinetail; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T07:58:29.706085+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Rhaphidura leucopygialis (Blyth, 1849)
- Name authority
- (Blyth, 1849)
- Common name
- Silver-rumped Spinetail
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Apodiformes
- Family
- Apodidae
- Genus
- Rhaphidura
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classAves
- orderApodiformes
- familyApodidae
- subfamilyApodinae
- genusRhaphidura Oates, 1883
- speciesRhaphidura leucopygialis (Blyth, 1849)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Rhaphidura. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Sabine's SpinetailRhaphidura sabini (J. E. Gray, 1829) | ApodidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Acanthylis leucopygialis Blyth, 1849 Blyth, 1849 | synonym |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=554982 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:4S4FM. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.