The Wet Woodland Bird Survey
Barn Swallow Hirundo rustica
| Appearance | Fast,
highly acrobatic flight in search of food, with long, angled wings and deeply forked tail
streamers in the adult. The streamers are longer in the male than the female. The spread
tail shows rows of white spots. The upperparts are a dark metallic blue, the face and
throat red, bordered below by narrow, dark breast band. The remaining underparts vary from
pale cream to rich pink. Size: 16-22cm tall |
| Voice | High-pitched vit-vit-vit, song is a twittering trill. |
| Habitat | Gardens, freshwater marshes, moors and fields. |
| Food | Flying insects. |
| Breeding Habits | 4-5
eggs in a mud, cup-like nest inside an outbuilding. Incubation takes 14-16 days and
fledging takes 17-24 days. 2-3 broods per year; May-June. |
| Location in Wet Woodland | Seen above the wet woodland occasionally, feeding with house martin flock. |