- Progne tapera
Identification
- Dull grey-brown upperparts
- Whitish underparts with brown chest and center of breast
- Dark crown
- Dark eye and bill
Distribution
Central and South America
Central America: Costa Rica and Panama
South America: Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay and Argentina.
Accidental vagrant to the United States with two records (One in Cape May, New Jersey and one on Monomoy Island, Massachusetts).
Taxonomy
Subspecies[1]
Two subspecies are recognized:
- P. t. tapera -East Colombia to Bolivia, the Guianas and Amazonian Brazil
- P. t. fusca - Southeast Brazil to Paraguay, east Bolivia, Uruguay and northern Argentina
Has been placed in the genus Phaeoprogne in the past.
Habitat
Dry savanna, riparian woodland, seasonally wet or flooded lowland grassland and moist forests.
Behaviour
Diet
Like other swallows, they catch insects on the wing in long, fast, swooping flights that may last for hours. Adaptations for this include short bills and a wide gape. Between forays they perch on wires or small tree limbs.
Breeding
Swallow pairs are monogamous. The clutch consists of 4-5 white eggs.
Vocalisation
They have very melodic and soft songs.
References
- Clements, JF. 2009. The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to December 2009. Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0801445019.
- Wikipedia
- BF Member observations
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2025) Brown-chested Martin. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 4 May 2025 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Brown-chested_Martin
External Links
GSearch checked for 2020 platform.1
