The red-breasted swallow (''Cecropis semirufa''), also known as the rufous-chested swallow, is a member of the family

Hirundinidae The swallows, martins, and saw-wings, or Hirundinidae, are a family of passerine songbirds found around the world on all continents, including occasionally in Antarctica. Highly adapted to aerial feeding, they have a distinctive appearance. The ...

, found in Sub-Saharan Africa. It is confined to the tropical rainforest during the wet season.

Description

The red-breasted swallow is similar to the

mosque swallow The mosque swallow (''Cecropis senegalensis'') is a large swallow. It is a resident breeder in much of sub-Saharan Africa, although most common in the west. It does not migrate but follows the rains to some extent. Taxonomy In 1760 the French z ...

but is slightly smaller and has longer tail streamers, both species having a blue crown and mantle contrasting with a rufous rump and underparts, In the red-breasted swallow the dark crown extends below the eye and there is no white on the underwing. The juvenile is similar to the

red-rumped swallow The red-rumped swallow (''Cecropis daurica'') is a small passerine bird in the swallow family. It breeds in open hilly country of temperate southern Europe and Asia from Portugal and Spain to Japan, India, Sri Lanka and tropical Africa. The Indi ...

but has blue on the side of the head rather than dull red.

Distribution and movements

The red-breasted swallow is found over most of Africa south of the Sahara from the Eastern Cape north to northern

Namibia Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and e ...

and southern

Angola , national_anthem = "Angola Avante"() , image_map = , map_caption = , capital = Luanda , religion = , religion_year = 2020 , religion_ref = , coordina ...

in the west and

Mozambique Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Mala ...

in the east, with a disjunct range from

Senegal Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣� ...

south to northern Angola east to

Uganda }), is a landlocked country in East Africa. The country is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the south by Tanzania. The south ...

, southwestern

Kenya ) , national_anthem = " Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

and northwestern

Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands ...

. The red-breasted swallow is migratory in most of its range. In southern Africa it is a summer visitor, nesting between July and March with most of the population migrating to equatorial Africa, although a few remain all year. In some parts of its range, e.g. in southeastern

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of G ...

Gabon Gabon (; ; snq, Ngabu), officially the Gabonese Republic (french: République gabonaise), is a country on the west coast of Central Africa. Located on the equator, it is bordered by Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, Cameroon to the north ...

, it appears to be resident, but it is mostly a rainy season breeding visitor across its northern range.

Habitat

The red-breasted swallow is a bird of dry open country. In more wooded areas it is replaced by the similar

. It builds a closed mud nest with a tubular entrance in a cavity or under bridges and similar structures. It will use deserted buildings, tree holes or caves, and has benefited from the construction of railway bridges and similar structures.

Biology

The red-breasted swallow is generally a solitary species and pairs rarely breed in groups. Three eggs are a typical clutch. These birds feed on insects which are almost all caught in the air and the species rarely lands on the ground, rather perching on wires and twigs. The typical flight is slow and buoyant. Like the closely related red-rumped and mosque swallows, the nests of the red-breasted swallow are often usurped by the

white-rumped swift The white-rumped swift (''Apus caffer'') is a species of swift. Although this small bird is superficially similar to a house martin, it is not closely related to that passerine species. The resemblances between the swallows and swifts are due t ...

Subspecies

There are two recognised subspecies. *''Cecropis semirufa gordoni'' is a smaller and slightly duller coloured subspecies found in the northern part of the species range. *''Cecropis semirufa semirufa'' is found in southern Africa. The birds breeding in east Africa are intermediate and have been named as a potential third subspecies ''Cecropis semirufa neumanni''.

References

External links

* Red-breasted swallow
Species text in The Atlas of Southern African Birds
{{Taxonbar, from=Q781535 red-breasted swallow Birds of Sub-Saharan Africa red-breasted swallow red-breasted swallow