Masked Woodswallow - BirdForum Opus

Male
Photo © by Pearly_Shells
Gluepot Reserve, South Australia, October 2004

Artamus personatus

Identification

18 - 20cm. A sexually dimorphic Woodswallow:

Male

• Black face and throat boardered at rear by white crescent
• Grey crown, upperparts and tail (tipped white)
• White or whitish underparts
• Dark brown eye
• Pale blue-grey bill with black tip

Female

Female
Photo © by Mike Bouette
Eyre Bird Observatory, Australia, October 2006

• Similar to male but duller and with browner tinge
• Indistinct pale crescent behind facial mask
• Washed brownish underparts

Juveniles are similar to females but much duller and whitish streaked and spotted above.

Distribution

Endemic to Australia. Absent from the extreme north, the east and southeast coast and Tasmania. Vagrants recorded in Tasmania and New Zealand.
Widespread and common but can be locally irregular in its range.

Taxonomy

Monotypic.
Most closely related to White-browed Woodswallow.

Habitat

Shrubland, open woodland and adjacent farmland.

Behaviour

Feeds mainly on insects, adults take also nectar. Prey taken mostly on wing.
Usually seen in pairs or small groups, during migration in bigger flocks.
Breeding season from July to March. Nests solitary or in loose colonies, in east of range sometimes in mixed colonies with White-browed Woodswallow. The nest is a shallow cup made of twigs, grass and rootlets. It's placed in a tree fork or in the end of a hollow limb or stump. Lays 2 - 3 eggs.
A highly nomadic species.

References

1. 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.
2. Del Hoyo, J, A Elliott, and D Christie, eds. 2009. Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 14: Bush-shrikes to Old World Sparrows. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions. ISBN 978-8496553507
3. Simpson, K and N Day. 1998. Field Guide to the Birds of Australia. London: Christopher Helm. ISBN 0-7136-4877-5

• List of references

Recommended Citation

• BirdForum Opus contributors. (2025) Masked Woodswallow. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 3 May 2025 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Masked_Woodswallow

External Links

Search for photos of Masked Woodswallow in the gallery

GSearch checked for 2020 platform.