Types of Swallows In The United States: Their Behavior & More (2024)

Swallows are agile aerial insectivores known for their acrobatic flight and beautiful songs. They may be found in a variety of environments, from open fields and wetlands to more urban areas, often nesting in cavities or human-made structures. These sociable birds often mingle with other swallow species.

Here is an overview of the swallows you can see in North America!

The Swallow Family

Swallows belong to the family Hirundinidae, which comprises of around 90 species of swallows, martins, and saw-wings. They are aerial specialists, with every aspect of their behavior – from foraging and courtship to nesting and migration – deeply intertwined with their flying capabilities and special adaptations.

Their bodies are sleek and streamlined, reducing air resistance. They have long, narrow, and pointed wings, which enhance their ability to glide and maneuver swiftly in the air.

Many swallows, such as the Barn Swallow, have deeply forked tails that aid in precise steering and quick changes of direction, helping them catch prey and evade predators. In fact, they are among the most agile birds in the world. However, this comes with some drawbacks, as their feet and legs are quite short, and they cannot comfortably walk on the ground and may have trouble taking off.

Swallows choose to nest in places they can easily reach by flight but are otherwise unreachable from the ground. Some build mud nests on buildings or cliffs, others burrow into dirt banks, and some nest in tree cavities or bird houses. Nowadays, most species nest close to humans in man-made structures rather than in natural environments.

Types of Swallows in the United States

Bank Swallow

Scientific name: Riparia riparia

Range: Birds breeding in northern Eurasia winter in Sub-Saharan Africa, whereas birds breeding in North America winter in South America and a small part of Central America.
Length: 4.7–5.5 inches

The Bank Swallow, also known as the Sand Martin in the Old World, is brown above and white below with a brown necklace. They are widely distributed across the world, inhabiting low areas near water bodies with natural cliffs and eroding banks for nesting. Nowadays, though, they often also go for human-made sites such as quarries.

Nesting in colonies ranging from 10 to 2,000 nests, Bank Swallows construct burrows in vertical banks. Males dig the nesting holes, and females hover from burrow to burrow to choose one and its respective male as their mate according to their liking. If a burrow does not attract a mate, the male abandons it and digs another.

Whether it be near or away from the nests, they are highly social, often mingling with other swallows, especially in migration. In adverse weather, they seek shelter and warmth by huddling together.

Barn Swallow

Scientific name: Hirundo rustica

Range: Breeds across most of Eurasia, except for the northernmost parts and winters in southern Eurasia and southern Africa. Birds breeding in North America winter in South America.
Length: 5.9-7.5 inches

The Barn Swallow is the most widespread swallow species in the world and has even visited Antarctica. They have dark iridescent blue upperparts and a distinctive deep rusty face. Birds in the Americas have cinnamon underparts and birds elsewhere white underparts.

According to folk tales, their long and deeply forked tail is a result of getting hit by a fireball hurled by an angry deity, which destroyed its middle tail feathers.

Barn Swallows prefer open country with low vegetation near water bodies. Semi-colonial, they settle in groups, often returning to the same breeding sites annually. They nest in man-made structures like barns and stables, fashioning cup nests from pellets of mud.

Older siblings and sometimes unrelated juveniles help raise the young. However, they also display brutality; unmated males may kill nestlings to break up pairs and secure mating opportunities.

Cave Swallow

Scientific name: Petrochelidon fulva

Range: Breed in the western southwestern United States, north-eastern Mexico, and Cuba. Resident in parts of Mexico and the Caribbean.
Length: 5.5 inches

Cave Swallows are dark iridescent blue above and pale below. Their most distinct feature is their chestnut forehead, cheeks, throat, and rump. Feeding primarily on small to medium-sized flying insects, they form loose flocks and forage over open spaces and vegetation. During nesting, adults mostly forage in the early morning and late afternoon.

Cave Swallows nest in small colonies and occasionally share sites with other swallow species. North American subspecies favor nesting in caves and sinkholes, while their South American counterparts opt for open areas like cliff faces and building sides.

They construct nests from small pellets of mud or guano. If they collect the material from the ground, they flutter their wings, possibly to deter predators or unwanted advances or to keep their wings clean.

Cliff Swallow

Scientific name: Petrochelidon pyrrhonota

Range: Breeds in North and Central America, winters in the southern half of South America.
Length: 5-6 inches

Cliff Swallows may appear brownish in poor light but in good light and up close you’ll notice that they actually have metallic dark blue upperparts, pale underparts, a pale chestnut rump patch, a brick-red face, and a bright pale spot on their forehead.

Cliff Swallows are social, foraging in groups and breeding colonially. They feed and nest near or over the water, often mingling with other swallow species. Traditionally, they nest on vertical cliffs, although nowadays, they also use man-made structures like bridges and culverts. Their colonies serve as information hubs where individuals exchange knowledge on foraging success.

However, that friendliness is lost when it comes to securing a nest. Throughout the year, they mostly sleep in trees, and during the breeding season, they start sleeping in nests as soon as they can carry them, even if it is not able to defend themselves from others.

Rivals skirmish on the nest over its ownership, which sometimes ends up in some of them falling down into the water. Luckily, they are able to row themselves back to the shore.

Northern Rough-winged Swallow

Scientific name: Stelgidopteryx serripennis

Range: Breeds across the United States and southernmost Canada, winters in Central America. Resident populations along the southern United States and Central America.
Length: 5.1–5.9 inches

The Northern Rough-winged Swallow is a modest bird that is entirely brown above with a smudgy throat that fades into a white underside.

Their name comes from their most distinctive feature – the edges of their wing feathers are serrated and running a finger along the edge of the feather feels rough. However, that is only discernible when you handle them. Their flight skills are exceptional and go through molts while airborne, a process that takes them around 100 days.

Northern Rough-winged Swallows are quite solitary during the breeding season, nesting either singly or in small groups. They nest in burrows created by other animals or in crevices of man-made structures, preferring clay, sand, or gravel banks near water bodies.

Unlike many other swallow species that build their nest from mud pellets, Northern Rough-winged Swallows opt for fibrous plant materials like grasses and twigs.

Purple Martin

Scientific name: Progne subis

Range: Mostly eastern North America but can also be found in some parts in the west and Central America. Winters in the southern half of South America.
Length: 7.5–7.9 inches

Purple Martins stand out as North America’s largest swallows and one of the few swallow species that are noticeably sexually dimorphic when it comes to plumage.

Males are a dazzling iridescent dark blue-purple overall. The sheen may sometimes appear green in certain light. Females and immatures, on the other hand, are duller and have a whitish underside.

Nesting in cavities, the species has transitioned from wild and natural sites like burrows in cliff faces to reliance on human-provided sites. While establishing colonies can be challenging, once established, they persist as long as there are available sites.

However, Purple Martins faced a significant population decline in the 20th century, attributed to competition with European starlings and house sparrows for nesting cavities.

Despite the belief that martins defend their sites, these aggressive competitors often overpower and even kill martins, usurping their nests and eliminating their young. They bounced back thanks to artificial nesting sites provided by humans, but if that option were to disappear, their population may face another crisis.

Tree Swallow

Scientific name: Tachycineta bicolor

Range: Breeds in most of North America, winters in the southernmost United States and Central America.
Length: 4.7-5.5 inches

The Tree Swallow is a beautiful iridescent blue-green bird with blackish wings and tail and white underparts. Despite their name, they are frequently seen in open, treeless areas, flying over fields and wetlands to catch insects. Their name comes from the fact that they nest in tree cavities, although now they also accept nest boxes.

During migration and winter, Tree Swallows form massive flocks, sometimes numbering in the hundreds of thousands. They gather before sunset, creating dense, swirling clouds above roost sites, with birds dropping down onto the roosting site until all are settled.

These swallows have the northernmost wintering grounds and also return earlier than others for the breeding season. However, during the breeding season, they become highly territorial and are usually solitary nesters, with both sexes defending their nest area against competitors.

Violet-green Swallow

Scientific name: Tachycineta thalassina

Range: Breed throughout western North America, including Alaska, winter along western Central America, and have year-round populations in Baja California and parts of Mexico.
Length: 4.7-5.2 inches

At first glance, Violet-green Swallows appear dark above and white below with whitish cheek patches, but in good light, you can see a green sheen on their backs and a violet one on their rumps.

These swallows are sociable throughout the year, forming large foraging groups. They dash over bodies of water, fields, and open woodlands, flying at speeds of up to 28 miles per hour. However, they are generally solitary nesters, choosing tree or cliff cavities as their home.

As cavity nesters, they often have more parasites on their feathers than open-nesting birds. To combat this, they frequently sunbathe and preen. If nests become heavily infested, they may abandon them, leaving the offspring behind.

Interestingly, a pair of Violet-green Swallows was once observed assisting a pair of Western Bluebirds in raising their young, even guarding and tending to the nestlings. However, it probably wasn’t completely out of the goodness of their heart, as they used the nest site to raise their own offspring once the bluebirds left.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are swallows swifts?

While swallows and swifts are both aerial insectivores that look and behave similarly, they belong to separate orders and families.

How many swallow species are there in the U.S.?

There are 8 swallow species that regularly breed in the United States.

Are swallows native to North America?

Several swallow species are native to North America like the Cliff Swallow, Tree Swallow, and Barn Swallow.

Do swallows eat while flying?

Swallows’ primary method of feeding is by catching insects in mid-air.

What do swallows symbolize?

Across many traditions, swallows symbolize positive meanings like love, joy, renewal, travel, new beginnings, peace, protection, and good fortune.

Are swallows songbirds?

Swallows are considered songbirds.