Ethiopian Swallow
Hirundo aethiopica
A long-tailed swallow with glossy-blue upperparts and white underparts. The throat is pale buff and there are dark marks at the sides of the breast, but no complete breast band. There is a small patch of brick red above the bill. Found in a wide variety of open habitats, often near water or human habitation. Similar to Red-chested and Barn Swallows, but is buff rather than brick red on the throat. Also similar to Wire-tailed Swallow, but doesn’t have a complete red cap, and has much shorter tail streamers.
Taxonomy
- Scientific name
- Hirundo aethiopica
- Authority
- Blanford, 1869
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Hirundinidae
- Genus
- Hirundo
Range and habitat
- Migration
- Complete migrants
Behavior
It breeds and nests on cliffs and in buildings.
Conservation
- Population trend
- rising
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
White-bellied Munia
Lonchura leucogastra
Dark brown finch-like bird with a white belly. Black face and throat blend smoothly into the brown crown and back. Inhabits open forest, forest edge, meadows, agricultural fields, and gardens. Generally forages in smaller flocks than Scaly-breasted and Chestnut Munias. Calls include loud peep and a loud “tsick”.
Black-billed Thrush
Turdus ignobilis
A drab thrush, common in open habitats and woodlands in the lowlands but also wanders up into Andean foothills. Nondescript grayish-brown with a pale whitish belly. Note indistinct streaking on throat; some populations also show a white patch on chest. Sexes similar. Usually seen singly or in pairs. Conspicuous. Song is a typical thrushlike series of musical phrases.
Australian Masked-Owl
Tyto novaehollandiae
Large owl with prominent facial disc and very powerful legs. Nests in a variety of habitats; requires hollows of very large trees for nest sites, and these may be in both drier and wetter forest types. Variable in size and color, ranging from larger, browner birds in Tasmania through to smaller, paler birds in northwestern Australia. This species is generally larger, darker, larger-legged, and more heavily spotted than Barn Owl. Call includes a loud explosive hiss.
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