Swifts are the most aerial of birds. Larger species, such as White-throated Needletail, are amongst the fastest fliers in the animal kingdom. Even the Common Swift cruises at 5 to 14 metres per second (18–50 km/h, 11–31 mph) and is capable of 60 metres per second (216 km/h, 134 mph) for short bursts. In a single year the common swift can cover at least 200,000 km