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 name melba comes from ‘melano-alba’ or ‘mel-alba’; Eigenhuis & Swaab (1992) posited that ‘melba’ might be a short form for ‘melano-alba’ or ‘mel-alba’ (Gr. melas, melanos = black; L. albus = white). Linnaeus certainly referred to these two colors in his diagnosis.Alpine swifts breed in mountains from southern Europe to the Himalaya. Like common swifts, they are strongly migratory, and winter much further south in southern Africa. Swifts have very short legs which are used for clinging to vertical surfaces. They never settle voluntarily on the ground, spending most of their lives in the air living on the insects they catch in their beaks. These birds fly from Switzerland to West Africa for 6 months straight without stopping. It's unclear if they sleep or rest while in flight.