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General Information
 Description:
The Welcome Swallow is metallic blue-black on top of its body with light
grey feathers on its chest and tummy. It has rust coloured feathers on its
forehead, throat and upper chest. It has a long forked tail, with a row of
white spots on the individual feathers. Welcome Swallows grow to about 15 cm
long, including the outer tail feathers, which are slightly shorter in the
female. Young Welcome Swallows are buffy white, instead of rusty, on the
forehead and throat, and have shorter tail streamers.
Voice:
Welcome Swallows make a mixture of twittering and soft warbling notes, with
a sharp whistle to raise the alarm.
Habitat: Welcome Swallows live all over
Australia, but are not found as often more often in the south than in the
far north. They live in a wide variety of habitats but don't like the more
heavily forested regions and drier inland areas. Birds are partially
migratory and move around to places where food is more available.
Food: Swallows feed on a wide variety on insects. Where insects
are in large supply, Welcome Swallows will feed in large flocks. They catch
their prey while flying, using their acrobatic flying skills. The prey is
guided into the bird's wide, open mouth with the help of short bristles
bordering the bill. These bristles also help protect the bird's eye.
Breeding: Welcome Swallows often make their
nests close to or where humans live, like in our Utility building at school.
The nest is an open cup of mud and grass, made by both male and female, and
is attached to a suitable structure, such as a vertical rock wall or
building. They line the nest with feathers and fur, and the female lays
three to five eggs between August and February. Often two clutches are
laid in a season. The female hatches the eggs by herself, and they
hatch after two to three weeks. However both parents feed the young who
leave the nest (fledge) after a further two to three weeks.
Reference: Information -
Australian Museum Fact Sheet
Photo: © Peter Craw
Some information and pictures were taken from children's charts and
where credited to that child does not claim to be original information.
Where possible, permission to reproduce has been sought and ownership
credited. Any infringement of copyright is purely unintentional and
ownership of pictures and information used is freely acknowledged.
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