White-rumped swallow | |
---|---|
In Buenos Aires | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Aves |
Order: | Passeriformes |
Family: | Hirundinidae |
Genus: | Tachycineta |
Species: | T. leucorrhoa |
Binomial name | |
Tachycineta leucorrhoa (Vieillot, 1817) | |
Range of T. leucorrhoa Resident range Breeding visitor Winter visitor |
The white-rumped swallow (Tachycineta leucorrhoa) is a species of bird in the family Hirundinidae. First described and given its binomial name by French ornithologist Louis Pierre Vieillot in 1817, it was for many years considered a subspecies of the Chilean swallow. The species is monotypic with no known population variations. It has a white supraloral streak, or streak above its lores (the region between a bird's eye and nostrils), which can be used to differentiate it from the Chilean swallow. The lores, ear coverts, tail, and wings are black, with white tips on the inner secondaries, tertials, and greater coverts of the wings. The rest of the upperparts are a glossy blue. Its underparts and underwing-coverts are white, in addition to the rump, as the name suggests. The sexes are similar, and the juvenile is duller and browner with a dusky breast.
This species usually builds its nest in holes in trees or dead snags or under or in artificial structures like fence posts and the eaves of buildings. The white-rumped swallow is solitary and nests in distributed pairs during the breeding season. The breeding season is from October to December in Brazil and from October to February in neighboring Argentina. Usually, only one brood with four to seven eggs is laid, although a second one will occasionally be laid. The female incubates the eggs over a period usually between 15 and 16 days, with the fledging usually occurring between 21 and 25 days after hatching.
This swallow is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, Peru, and Uruguay. Its natural habitats are:
It is classified as a least-concern species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Its population is increasing and it may benefit from the increase in availability of artificial nest sites. The shiny cowbird is an occasional brood parasite of the white-rumped swallow.
The white-rumped swallow was first formally described as Hirundo leucorrhoa by French ornithologist Louis Pierre Vieillot in 1817 in his Nouveau Dictionnaire d'Histoire Naturelle. [2] Subsequently, it was moved to its current genus, Tachycineta , which was created in 1850 by Jean Cabanis. [3] The binomial name is derived from Ancient Greek. Tachycineta is from takhukinetos, "moving quickly", and the specific leucorrhoa is from leukos, "white", and orrhos, "rump". [4]
The species was formerly considered a subspecies of the Chilean swallow, most likely due to the similarity in morphology and calls. It is occasionally placed in the genus Iridoprocne with the tree swallow, mangrove swallow, white-winged swallow, and Chilean swallow. [5] A study of the mitochondrial DNA of Tachycineta supports the split, although studies do show that the white-rumped swallow forms a superspecies, leucorrhoa, with the Chilean swallow. [6] [7] This species is monotypic, with no known subspecies. [5]
This swallow is named for its white rump but it is also sometimes called the white-browed swallow, due to its white supraloral streak. [8]
The white-rumped swallow measures 13 centimetres (5.1 in) in length and weighs 17–21 grams (0.60–0.74 oz). It has an average wingspan of 115.7 millimetres (4.56 in). It has a white supraloral streak, [5] a white streak above its eye, and black lores and ear coverts. The lores and ear-coverts have a blue-green gloss. It has black wings, with white tips on its inner secondaries, tertials, and greater wing-coverts. The white tips erode with age. The tail is black and has a shallow fork. The white-rumped swallow also has, as the name implies, a white rump. The rump is not totally white; it has some fine shaft streaks. The rest of the upperparts, in addition to the crown, nape, and forehead, are a glossy blue. These features, when this bird is not breeding, are more greenish-blue. The underparts and underwing-coverts are white. [5] The bill, legs, and feet are black, and the irides are brown. The sexes are alike, and the juvenile can be distinguished by its dusky breast and the fact that it is duller and more brownish. [5] [8]
This swallow is similar to the Chilean swallow but can be differentiated by the Chilean swallow's lack of a supraloral white streak. [5] The Chilean swallow also seems to keep its glossy blue upperparts when not breeding. [9] The white-rumped swallow is, in addition, larger than the Chilean swallow. [8]
The song of the white-rumped swallow is often described as a soft gurgling [5] or a broken warble. It usually sings while flying at dawn. [8] The call is described as a quick and toneless zzt. [10] The alarm note it uses is short and harsh. [8]
This swallow is native to Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, Peru, and Uruguay. [1] It inhabits open and semi-open country near water, the edge of woodland, and human settlements. [5] It also occurs in dry savannas, degraded former forest, and both subtropical and tropical seasonally flooded grassland. [1] It is additionally known to occur in the pampas of Argentina and Uruguay. During the austral winter, the birds in the southern population usually move to the northern parts of its range. [9] This bird can be found at altitudes ranging from sea level to 1,100 metres (3,600 ft). [1]
After the breeding season, the white-rumped swallow forms flocks that sometimes consist of hundreds of individuals. [5] These flocks frequently consist of both the white-rumped swallow and other species of swallows. [8]
The white-rumped swallow builds nests in holes or crevices in a tree or dead snag. It also builds them in artificial structures like holes in fence posts or under eaves, typically under those of abandoned buildings. [9] This swallow will sometimes reuse favourable nest sites, which has a positive effect on fledgling survival. [11] It occasionally nests in abandoned nests of the firewood-gatherer. The nests themselves are usually made of plant fibres and lined with hair and feathers. This swallow is solitary and, [5] during the breeding season, is scattered in pairs. [9] Pairs can be seen to fight and chase each other at the nest site. [8]
This swallow displays nest prospecting behaviour, visiting potential future nesting sites. Nest prospecting is a behaviour recorded in both breeding and non-breeding individuals, and occurs both after the failure or success of a nest and while the bird is actively nesting. After a nest failure, the average distance an individual travels during a prospecting visit increases dramatically, from about 121 metres (397 ft) to about 5.1 kilometres (3.2 mi). Nest prospecting seems to occur more frequently in individuals with a smaller clutch size. Male visits to other nests could be to care for extra-pair young, although it does not explain female visits. [12] Extra-pair young, or young with parents outside of the breeding pair, account for about 56 percent of all offspring. [13]
The breeding season of the white-rumped swallow is from October to December in Brazil, and from October to February in Argentina. [5] During this period, one brood is usually laid, although it will occasionally lay a second brood. [14] On average, 58 percent of nests will fledge at least one chick. [5]
The clutch is usually four to seven eggs that transition from pinkish-white when laid to pure white. The eggs measure 19.6 by 13.7 millimetres (0.77 in × 0.54 in) and weigh 1.9 grams (0.067 oz) on average. [8] Clutch size and egg size are noted to usually decrease as the breeding season progresses. Late-season nestlings also weigh less than early-season nestlings. [14] It takes 15 to 16 days for the female to incubate the clutch. [5] About 58 percent of the broods hatch synchronously, although the hatching sometimes lasts over four days. [14] On average, 78 percent of the eggs will hatch. The fledging period is 21 to 25 days, with about 95 percent of the nestlings fledging. [5] The white-rumped swallow, on average, lives for 2.12 years. The male lives slightly longer than the female. [15]
The white-rumped swallow is an aerial insectivore that usually feeds alone or in small groups, feeding on flies, beetles, flying ants, Orthoptera, and Lepidoptera. It usually feeds close over water, pastures, and open woodland. Occasionally skimming the ground, its flight is fast and direct. It follows humans and other animals, [5] and can usually be seen near humans and animals that are disturbing insects. [8]
The shiny cowbird is a brood parasite that occasionally lays its eggs in the nest of white-rumped swallow. After a shiny cowbird fledges, it exhibits behaviour that causes it to be fed more, much to the detriment of white-rumped swallow nestlings. About six percent of nests are affected by this. [16] This swallow has been known to lose nests to the southern house wren, a subspecies of the house wren. [5]
The white-rumped swallow is classified as a least-concern species by the IUCN. This is due to its large range, estimated to be 5,580,000 square kilometres (2,150,000 sq mi), its increase in population, and its large population. [1] Increase in the availability of artificial nest sites may benefit this bird, [5] and could be a factor in its increasing population. [1] It is described as being fairly common in its range. [5]
The fieldfare is a member of the thrush family Turdidae. It breeds in woodland and scrub in northern Europe and across the Palearctic. It is strongly migratory, with many northern birds moving south during the winter. It is a very rare breeder in Great Britain and Ireland, but winters in large numbers in the United Kingdom, Southern Europe, North Africa and the Middle East. It is omnivorous, eating a wide range of molluscs, insects and earthworms in the summer, and berries, grain and seeds in the winter.
The western house martin, sometimes called the common house martin, northern house martin or, particularly in Europe, just house martin, is a migratory passerine bird of the swallow family which breeds in Europe, north Africa and across the Palearctic; and winters in sub-Saharan Africa and tropical Asia. It feeds on insects which are caught in flight, and it migrates to climates where flying insects are plentiful. It has a blue head and upperparts, white rump and pure white underparts, and is found in both open country and near human habitation. It is similar in appearance to the two other martin species of the genus Delichon, which are both endemic to eastern and southern Asia. It has two accepted subspecies.
The tree swallow is a migratory bird of the family Hirundinidae. Found in the Americas, the tree swallow was first described in 1807 by French ornithologist Louis Vieillot as Hirundo bicolor. It has since been moved to its current genus, Tachycineta, within which its phylogenetic placement is debated. The tree swallow has glossy blue-green upperparts, with the exception of the blackish wings and tail, and white underparts. The bill is black, the eyes dark brown, and the legs and feet pale brown. The female is generally duller than the male, and the first-year female has mostly brown upperparts, with some blue feathers. Juveniles have brown upperparts, and grey-brown-washed breasts. The tree swallow breeds in the US and Canada. It winters along southern US coasts south, along the Gulf Coast, to Panama and the northwestern coast of South America, and in the West Indies.
The northern rough-winged swallow is a small, migratory swallow. It is very similar to the southern rough-winged swallow, Stelgidopteryx ruficollis.
The yellow-bellied sapsucker is a medium-sized woodpecker that breeds in Canada and the northeastern United States.
The rose-breasted grosbeak, colloquially called "cut-throat" due to its coloration, is a large, seed-eating grosbeak in the cardinal family (Cardinalidae). It is primarily a foliage gleaner. Males have black heads, wings, backs, and tails, and a bright rose colored patch on their white breast. Males and females exhibit marked sexual dimorphism.
The brown-headed cowbird is a small, obligate brood parasitic icterid native to temperate and subtropical North America. It is a permanent resident in the southern parts of its range; northern birds migrate to the southern United States and Mexico in winter, returning to their summer habitat around March or April.
The violet-green swallow is a small North American passerine bird in the swallow family. These aerial insectivores are distributed along the west coast from Alaska to Mexico, extending as far east as Montana and Texas. With an appearance very similar to the tree swallow, these individuals can be identified by the white rump side-patches that appear to separate their green back and purple tail. Violet-green swallows are secondary cavity nesters, found in a number of habitats including deciduous and coniferous forest. In addition to nesting in tree holes within these habitats, they are also widely observed nesting in the cracks of large cliffs.
The Carolina wren is a common species of wren that is a resident in the eastern half of the United States of America, the extreme south of Ontario, Canada, and the extreme northeast of Mexico. Severe winters restrict the northern limits of their range, while favorable weather conditions lead to a northward extension of their breeding range. Their preferred habitat is in dense cover in forest, farm edges, and suburban areas. This wren is the state bird of South Carolina.
The white-winged swallow is a resident breeding swallow in tropical South America from Colombia, Venezuela, Trinidad, and Argentina. It is not found west of the Andes. This swallow is largely non-migratory.
The shiny cowbird is a passerine bird in the New World family Icteridae. It breeds in most of South America except for dense forests and areas of high altitude such as mountains. Since 1900 the shiny cowbird's range has shifted northward, and it was recorded in the Caribbean islands as well as the United States, where it is found breeding in southern Florida. It is a bird associated with open habitats, including disturbed land from agriculture and deforestation.
The mangrove swallow is a passerine bird in the swallow family that breeds in coastal regions from Mexico through Central America to Panama. It has blue-green upperparts, blackish flight feathers, a white rump, a black tail, and white underparts. It can be identified by the supraloral white streak, the white line near its eye, which only occurs in two other species of Tachycineta: the violet-green swallow and the white-rumped swallow. The sexes, although similar in plumage, differ slightly in size. The juveniles have grey-brown upperparts and white-washed underparts. This swallow's song is generally described as a soft trilling, with a rolled jeerrt call, and a sharp alarm note.
The blue-and-white swallow is a passerine bird that breeds from Nicaragua south throughout South America, except in the deserts and the Amazon Basin. The southern race is migratory, wintering as far north as Trinidad, where it is a regular visitor. The nominate northern race may have bred on that island.
The chalk-browed mockingbird is a bird in the family mimidae. It is found in Brazil, Bolivia, Argentina, Paraguay, Suriname, and Uruguay.
The lesser striped swallow is a large swallow. It breeds in Sub-Saharan Africa from Sierra Leone and southern Sudan south into eastern South Africa. It is partially migratory with South African birds wintering further north. West African birds leave the north of the breeding range in the dry season.
The golden swallow is a swallow endemic to the Caribbean island of Hispaniola and was once native to Jamaica, but is now extirpated there. It is restricted to isolated montane forests that primarily consist of the Hispaniolan pine. This species is considered to be a vulnerable species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The exact cause of its extirpation from Jamaica is unknown, but likely factors include predation by introduced mammals and habitat loss, although the habitat loss theory is not supported by much evidence. The last sighting of the nominate subspecies was in Hardwar Gap, with three birds being seen on 8 June 1989.
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.
The scimitar-billed woodcreeper is a species of bird in the subfamily Dendrocolaptinae of the ovenbird family Furnariidae. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay.
The screaming cowbird is an obligate brood parasite belonging to the family Icteridae and is found in South America. It is also known commonly as the short billed cowbird.
The Chilean swallow is a species of bird in the family Hirundinidae. It breeds in Chile and Patagonia, migrating north as far as Bolivia, Paraguay, and Rio Grande do Sul.