Overview
Common House-Martin: Small swallow, metallic dark blue mantle and crown; wings and tail are black-gray. Forked tail. Solid white rump distinguishes it from other swallows. Legs covered in white down. Flight is graceful, swift and direct on rapidly beating wings. It soars on wide triangular wings.
Range and Habitat
Common House-Martin: Strongly migratory. Winters in tropical Africa; remains at breeding sites in Europe, Asia from April to October. Stray to Alaskan Bering Sea region. Found in varying open habitats, always near water, mud, and nesting sites. Often perches on utility cables.
Topo Map:
Swallow-like Body
Listen to Call
Voice Text
"tseep, tseep, tseep", "prrrtt, prrrtt, prrrtt"
Interesting Facts
The Common House Martin was first described by Linnaeus in his Systema Naturae in 1758 as Hirundo urbica, but was placed in its current genus Delichon by Thomas Horsfield and Frederic Moore in 1854.
Delichon is an anagram of the Ancient Greek term chelīdōn, meaning 'swallow', and the species name urbicum (urbica until 2004, due to a misunderstanding of Latin grammar) means 'of the town' in Latin.
This species has greatly benefited from forest clearing, which create the open habitats it prefers, and from human habitation which have given it an abundance of safe man-made nest sites.
A group of martins has many collective nouns, including a "circlage", "flight", "gulp", "richness", and "swoop" of martins.
Bird Term Glossary
Author
Mary Beth Geisel
Artist
David Wenzel
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