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Bird name:

Northern Rough-winged Swallow

Stelgidopteryx serripennis

Order

PASSERIFORMES

Family

Swallows (Hirundinidae)

Code 4

NRWS

Code 6

STESER

ITIS

178443

Breeding Location:

Grassland with scattered trees, Desert, Grasslands, Desert, semi, Streams, upland

Breeding Type:

Monogamous, Solitary nester, Small colonies

Breeding Population:

Increasing

Egg Color:

White

Number of Eggs:

4 - 8

Incubation Days:

Egg Incubator:

Female

Nest Material:

No nest materials.

Migration:

Migratory

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General

Northern Rough-winged Swallow: Small, stocky swallow with brown upperparts, paler underparts, and pale brown throat. Tail is squared with white undertail coverts. Sexes are similar. Juvenile has two distinct cinnamon-brown wing-bars.

Range and Habitat

Northern Rough-winged Swallow: Breeds from southeastern Alaska and southern Canada southward throughout the U.S. Spends winters north to southern California, the Gulf Coast, and southern Florida.

Breeding and Nesting

Northern Rough-winged Swallow: Four to eight white eggs are laid in a burrow or natural cavity; also uses ready-made cavities in bridges, culverts, and other streamside masonry. Eggs are incubated for 12 days by the female.

Foraging and Feeding

Northern Rough-winged Swallow: Eats insects; forages in flight, taking insects in the air or from the water surface; sometimes forages on the ground. Drinks by skimming the water surface while in flight.

Vocalization

Northern Rough-winged Swallow: Song is a low, unmusical "br-r-ret."

Similar Species

Northern Rough-winged Swallow: Bank Swallow is smaller and has a white throat and brown breast band.

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Bird Call Credits: The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Martyn Stewart, http://www.naturesound.org, Redmond, Washington USA. The reuse or copying of bird calls in this database is strictly forbidden.

Underparts

Belly, undertail coverts, chest, flanks, and foreneck.

Undertail coverts

Small feathers that cover the areas where the retrices (tail feathers) attach to the rump.

Upperparts

Back, rump, hindneck, wings, and crown.

4 and 6 letter alpha codes

The four letter common name alpha code is is derived from the first two letters of the common first name and the first two letters of common last name. The six letter species name alpha code is derived from the first three letters of the scientific name (genus) and the first three letters of the scientific name (species). See (1) below for the rules used to create the codes..

Four-letter (for English common names) and six-letter (for scientific names) species alpha codes were developed by Pyle and DeSante (2003, North American Bird-Bander 28:64-79) to reflect A.O.U. taxonomy and nomenclature (A.O.U. 1998) as modified by Supplements 42 (Auk 117:847-858, 2000) and 43 (Auk 119:897-906, 2002). The list has been updated by Pyle and DeSante to reflect changes reported by the A.O.U from 2003 through 2006.

Field Guide to Birds of North America