The Swallow (Hirundo rustica) is a migratory bird of the family Hirundinidae native to Europe, Asia and Africa, visiting Britain in April and staying until late September. The upper parts of the Swallow are uniformly blue-black in colour, with a patch of red on the forehead. The chin is also red, and the underside a general cream colour with a deep collar of a blue-black colour across the throat. The bill is broad and flat, and the tail forked, more deeply in the male than the female. The wings are very long. Swallows are insectivorous, and generally take food on the wing. The nest is saucer-shaped and made of mud and grass and straw, lined with fine grass and feathers, and usually built upon a rafter or other shelf in a barn or out-house. Research Swallow
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Matt and Leela Probert
Abbreviations
Nature
Research Swallow
