Bank Swallows
By Susan Sobehrad
Fall 97
Description:
Swallows are small, graceful birds with short bills and small feet suitable only for
perching.. They have long, powerful, pointed wings and are expert flyers. Flying insects
are their primary food source and swallows eat many of the mosquitoes which might
otherwise plague us. Bank swallows are the smallest swallows, and measure between 4-1/2
and 5-1/2 inches. Their coloring is brown above and dull white below, and their breast is
crossed by a distinctive brown band. They have notched tails. They have a sharp, unmusical
voice, calling "pret" or "trit-trit." They live in the banks of
rivers, creeks, lakes, and seashores.
There are 89 different species of swallows, and they are found in almost all parts of the
world. They prefer open country, and are often found near water.
Bank swallows lay four to six white eggs in a grass-and-feather nest in a hollow at the
end of a deep tunnel that the swallow digs near the top of a steep bank. These swallows
prefer to breed in colonies, and the banks may sometimes contain numerous holes.
Swallow Colonies
Colonies consist of two or three pairs to a few thousand. Swallows in the colony tend to
lay their eggs at the same time, and forage for their young at the same time. This is an
advantage for the parent swallows, because insects swarms are unpredictable and the search
is easier with more parents to search. Originally, bank swallows nested only in banks-but
they have adapted to humans and are now seen nesting in man-made excavations.
Classification:
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