Pale Rock Martin
- Ptyonoprogne obsoleta
Hirundo obsoleta
Identification
12·5–14 cm (5-5½ in)
- Light brownish-grey upperparts
- Creamy-white throat
Distribution
Africa, Middle East, Asia
Northern Africa: found in Morocco, Algeria, Libya, Egypt
Western Africa: Mauritania, Niger, Chad
Eastern Africa: Sudan, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Djibouti, Somalia
Middle East: Turkey, Israel, Arabian Peninsula, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Oman, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Iraq, Iran
Asia: Afghanistan, Pakistan
Taxonomy
Previously in genus Hirundo.
Sometimes included in Rock Martin.
Subspecies
There are 8 subspecies[1]:
- P. f. presaharica:
- South Morocco, Algeria (except south) and northern Mauritania
- P. f. spatzi:
- P. f. buchanani:
- South-central Sahara (Aïr Massif of northern Niger)
- P. f. obsoleta:
- P. f. perpallida :
- South Iraq and north-eastern Saudi Arabia
- P. f. pallida:
- East Iran, southern Afghanistan and Pakistan
- P. f. arabica:
- P. f. pusilla:
Habitat
Common breeding resident of mountains, foothills and high-rise buildings near Gulf coast.
Behaviour
Diet
Their diet consists almost entirely of flying insects, such as beetles, bees, wasps, ants, bugs and flies.
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2018. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2018. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- Avibase
- Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved Aug 2018)
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2021) Pale Crag Martin. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 13 May 2021 from https://www.birdforum.net/wiki/Pale_Crag_Martin
External Links
