CLIPBOARD : BREEDING BIRD: VIOLET-GREEN SWALLOW (Tachycineta thalassina)

Description: Slender, streamlined body with long, pointed wings; resembles swift. White below with white flank patches reaching up over rump. Glossy green head and upper back contrasts with shiny violet wings and tail. Females are duller above than males. White cheeks extend above eye. Short, gaping bills and tiny, weak feet. Length: 5 inches.

Habitat: Open woodlands, suburbs, canyons and cliffs.

Diet: Flying insects; rarely eats insects on ground.

Displays: Courtship includes pre-dawn song flights.

Nest: Grass and weed stems line hollow tree or other cavity.

Eggs: White, unmarked. Length: 0.8 inches.

Call: A rapid chit-chit - chit wheet, wheet.

Breeding bird atlas: To report bird breeding activity in your neighborhood, or to get information on the breeding bird atlas, call Sea and Sage Audubon Society members Sylvia Gallagher, (714) 962-8990, or Nancy Kenyon, (714) 786-3160.

Notes: Flocks perch in long rows on branches and wires. Adept flyers, swallows dart to catch flying insects. Bathes by passing over water, dips body while vibrating feathers and raising tail to splash water on back.

Note: Map is divided into 5-kilometer squares so that Audubon Society volunteers can more easily survey areas on a regular basis.

Sources: Sea and Sage Audubon Society; “The Birder’s Handbook,” Ehrlich, Dobkin and Wheye, Fireside Books (1988); “Field Guide to the Birds of North America,” National Geographic Society (1987); “Birds of Southern California: Status and Distribution,” Garrett and Dunn, Los Angeles Audubon Society (1981).

Indicates 5-kilometer-square areas where breeding activity has been confirmed.