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Bird name:

Cave Swallow

Petrochelidon fulvaOrder: PASSERIFORMES Family: Swallows (Hirundinidae)
Codes: Common Name: CASW Scientific Name: PETFUL ITIS Taxonomic No.: 178460

Breeding Location:

Mountains



Breeding Type:

Monogamous, Colonial



Breeding Population:

Fairly common



Egg Color:

White with brown markings



Number of Eggs:

3 - 5



Incubation Days:

15 - 18



Egg Incubator:

Both sexes



Nest Material:

Pellets of clay or mud., Lined with grasses or a few feathers.



Migration:

Migratory



Splitbar

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Attracting Clingers

General

Cave Swallow: Small swallow (Southwest pelodoma), with steel-blue upperparts, white underparts, and rufous wash on breast and sides. Forehead is chestnut-brown and throat and rump are buff. Tail is square. Sexes are similar.

Range and Habitat

Cave Swallow: Breeds in southern Texas, southeastern New Mexico, and rarely in southern Arizona. Spends winters in tropics. Preferred habitats include open country near caves and cliffs.

Breeding and Nesting

Cave Swallow: Three to five white eggs marked with brown are laid in a nest made of clay pellets and mud, lined with grass and a few feathers, and plastered to the side of a cave, sinkhole, bridge, culvert, building, or even a drainage pipe. Incubation ranges from 15 to 18 days and is carried out by both parents.

Foraging and Feeding

Cave Swallow: Feeds on insects; forages in flight.

Vocalization

Cave Swallow: Song is a series of dry warbling, buzzing chatters. Call is "chu-chu" or "zweih."

Similar Species

Cave Swallow: Cliff Swallow has chestnut-brown throat and white forehead, or, in the southwest, a chestnut-brown forehead.

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Family Swallow (Hirundinidae)_blue
Species Petrochelidon fulva
Length5 - 6 Inches
Wingspan12 Inches

Cave Swallow

Cave Swallow: Small swallow (Southwest pelodoma), with steel-blue upperparts, white underparts, rufous wash on breast and sides. Forehead is chestnut-brown and throat and rump are buff. Tail is square. Swift, graceful flight, alternates several rapid, deep wing beats with long curving glides.

● Song: "chu-chu", "zweih"

● Foraging & Feeding: Cave Swallow: Feeds on insects; forages in flight.

● Breeding & nesting: Cave Swallow: Three to five white eggs marked with brown are laid in a nest made of clay pellets and mud, lined with grass and a few feathers, and plastered to the side of a cave, sinkhole, bridge, culvert, building, or even a drainage pipe. Incubation ranges from 15 to 18 days and is carried out by both parents.

● Similar species: Cave Swallow: Cliff Swallow has chestnut-brown throat and white forehead, or, in the southwest, a chestnut-brown forehead.

Flight Pattern

Swift graceful flight, alternating several rapid deep wing beat with long elliptical glides ending on sharp sweeping upturns. Soars on winds and thermals.
Cave Swallow (southwest) Breeding Male Body Illustration
● Range & Habitat: Cave Swallow: Breeds in southern Texas, southeastern New Mexico, and rarely in southern Arizona. Spends winters in tropics. Preferred habitats include open country near caves and cliffs.
BreedingMonogamous, Colonial
PopulationFairly common
MigrationMigratory
Weight0.7 Ounces
UnderpartsX
Belly, undertail coverts, chest, flanks, and foreneck.
UpperpartsX
Back, rump, hindneck, wings, and crown.
BreastX
The upper front part of a bird.
RumpX
The area between the uppertail coverts and the back of the bird.
4 and 6 letter alpha codesX

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.

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ITIS CodesX

The Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) was established in the mid-1990�s as a cooperative project among several federal agencies to improve and expand upon taxonomic data (known as the NODC Taxonomic Code) maintained by the National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

To find the ITIS page for a bird species go to the ITIS web site advanced search and report page at http://www.itis.gov/advanced_search.html. You can enter the TSN or the common name of the bird. It will return the ITIS page for that bird. Another way to obtain the ITIS page is to use the Google search engine. Enter the string ITIS followed by the taxonomic ID, for example "ITIS 178041" will return the page for the Allen's Hummingbird.

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Parts of a Standing birdX
Head Feathers and MarkingsX
Parts of a Flying birdX