Petrochelidon

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Petrochelidon
Cliff Swallow Builder.jpg
An American cliff swallow starting to build a mud nest under the eaves of a building in California
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Hirundinidae
Genus: Petrochelidon
Cabanis, 1851
Type species
Hirundo melanogaster [1]
Swainson, 1827
Species

10, See text

Petrochelidon is a genus of birds known as cliff-nesting swallows. The genus name Petrochelidon is from the Greek words petra, "rock", and khelidon, "swallow". [2]

Contents

The genus includes all of the five species of birds commonly called cliff swallow, and contains the following species:

Species in taxonomic order

The genus contains ten species: [3]

ImageCommon nameScientific nameDistribution
Juvenile Cliff Swallow.jpg American cliff swallow Petrochelidon pyrrhonotaCanada and the United States of America, South American countries, such as Southern Brazil, Uruguay, and parts of Argentina.
Cave Swallow (24145023757).jpg Cave swallow Petrochelidon fulvasouth-eastern New Mexico, Texas, Florida, the Greater Antilles, portions of southern Mexico, and along the west coast of South America.
Chestnut-collared Swallow - South Ecuador S4E9881 (16978771121).jpg Chestnut-collared swallow Petrochelidon rufocollarisEcuador and Peru.
Petrochelidon preussi -Southwest Region, Cameroon -four-8.jpg Preuss's cliff swallow Petrochelidon preussiBenin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and Togo.
Petrochelidon rufigula, broeikolonie in Angola, Birding Weto, a.jpg Red-throated cliff swallow Petrochelidon rufigulaAngola, Republic of the Congo, DRC, Gabon, and Zambia.
Red Sea cliff swallow Petrochelidon perditaSudan.
South African cliff swallow, Petrochelidon spilodera, at Suikerbosrand Nature Reserve, Gauteng, South Africa (23375433635).jpg South African cliff swallow Petrochelidon spiloderaBotswana, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabon, Lesotho, Malawi, Namibia, South Africa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
Streaked-throated Swallow (Hirundo fluvicola) in Hyderabad, AP W IMG 2514.jpg Streak-throated swallow Petrochelidon fluvicolaAfghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Nepal and Pakistan.
Fairy Martin (6084093165).jpg Fairy martin Petrochelidon arielAustralia, with some birds reaching New Guinea and Indonesia.
Tree Martin (4468433245).jpg Tree martin Petrochelidon nigricansAustralia, New Guinea, Indonesia east of the Wallace Line and the Solomon Islands.

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The Eurasian crag martin or just crag martin is a small passerine bird in the swallow family. It is about 14 cm (5.5 in) long with ash-brown upperparts and paler underparts, and a short, square tail that has distinctive white patches on most of its feathers. It breeds in the mountains of southern Europe, northwestern Africa and across the Palearctic. It can be confused with the three other species in its genus, but is larger with brighter tail spots and different plumage tone. Many European birds are resident, but some northern populations and most Asian breeders are migratory, wintering in northern Africa, the Middle East or India.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cliff swallow</span> Species of bird

The cliff swallow or American cliff swallow is a member of the passerine bird family Hirundinidae, the swallows and martins. The generic name Petrochelidon is derived from the Ancient Greek petros meaning "stone" and khelidon (χεlidOn) "swallow", and the specific name pyrrhonota comes from purrhos meaning "flame-coloured" and -notos "-backed".

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cave swallow</span> Species of bird

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Streak-throated swallow</span> Species of song bird

The streak-throated swallow or the Indian cliff swallow is a passerine bird, which includes a large number of other species including many swallows. It is native of South Asia where it is a breeder, year-round resident or winter visitor in the countries of Afghanistan, India, Nepal and Pakistan. It occurs as a vagrant in the Maldives, Sri Lanka, and the Middle East.

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The dusky crag martin is a small passerine bird in the swallow family. It is about 13 cm (5 in) long with a broad body and wings, and a short square tail that has small white patches near the tips of most of its feathers. This martin has sooty-brown upperparts and slightly paler underparts. The two subspecies are resident breeding birds in South Asia from the Indian subcontinent to southwestern China and the northern parts of Thailand, Vietnam and Laos.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rock martin</span> Small passerine bird in the swallow family in central and southern Africa

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The tree martin is a member of the swallow family of passerine birds. It breeds in Australia, mostly south of latitude 20°S and on Timor island. It is migratory, wintering through most of Australia, New Guinea, Indonesia east of the Wallace Line and the Solomon Islands. It is a vagrant to New Zealand, where it has bred, and New Caledonia. This species is frequently placed in the genus Hirundo as Hirundo nigricans.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pale crag martin</span> Passerine bird in the swallow family

The pale crag martin is a small passerine bird in the swallow family that is resident in Northern Africa and in Southwestern Asia, east to Pakistan. It breeds mainly in the mountains, but also at lower altitudes, especially in rocky areas and around towns. Unlike most swallows, it is often found far from water. It is 12–13 cm long, with mainly brown plumage, paler-toned on the upper breast and underwing coverts, and with white "windows" on the spread tail in flight. The sexes are similar in appearance, but juveniles have pale fringes to the upperparts and flight feathers. It was formerly considered to be the northern subspecies of the rock martin of southern Africa, although it is smaller, paler, and whiter-throated than that species. The pale crag martin hunts along cliff faces for flying insects using a slow flight with much gliding. Its call is a soft twitter.

The Red Sea cliff swallow, also known as the Red Sea swallow, is a species of bird in the family Hirundinidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Preuss's cliff swallow</span> Species of bird

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Red-throated cliff swallow</span> Species of bird

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">South African cliff swallow</span> Species of bird

The South African cliff swallow, also known as the South African swallow, is a species of bird in the family Hirundinidae native southern Africa. It winters to the lower Congo Basin.

References

  1. "Hirundinidae". aviansystematics.org. The Trust for Avian Systematics. Retrieved 2023-07-15.
  2. Jobling, James A (2010). The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. London: Christopher Helm. p.  300. ISBN   978-1408125014.
  3. Gill, Frank; Donsker, David; Rasmussen, Pamela, eds. (December 2023). "Swallows". IOC World Bird List Version 14.1. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 11 January 2024.