White-rumped swallow

Tachycineta leucorrhoa

Photo by Carlos Gussoni (Internet Bird Collection)

Common name:
white-rumped swallow (en); andorinha-de-sobre-branco (pt); hirondelle à diadème (fr); golondrina cejiblanca (es); weißbürzelschwalbe (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Passeriformes
Family Hirundinidae

Range:
This species is found from central Brazil and Bolivia to north-eastern Argentina.

Size:
These birds are 13-14 cm long and weigh about 20 g.

Habitat:
The white-rumped swallow is found over open habitats, usually near water, namely wet grasslands, marshes, coastal lagoons, tropical moist forests, dry savannas, and also pastures, and urban areas. They are present from sea level up to an altitude of 1.100 m.

Diet:
They are strictly insectivorous, mainly catching their prey on the wing. They are known to eat termite alates, ants, flies and bees.

Breeding:
White-rumped swallows nest in natural or man-made cavities, which they line with grasses, leaves and feathers. There the female lays 4-6 white eggs which are incubated for about 16 days. The chicks fledge around 24 days after hatching.

Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has a very large breeding range and is described as common. The population is suspected to be increasing owing to the increasing availability of artificial nest sites.