Bank Swallow

Bank swallows have an almost cosmopolitan distribution and migrate between distinct breeding and wintering areas. They nest colonially in soft banks and bluffs beside rivers, streams, and coasts, particularly along eroding, slow-gradient waterways. Gravel pits, quarries, and road cuts provide important artificial nesting sites. Feeding occurs over wetlands, open water, grasslands, farmland, and open woodland. Most populations occupy lowlands, although the species reaches 2,100 meters. Adults average 12 centimeters long and weigh approximately 10.2 to 18.8 grams. (Animal Diversity Web)

These agile swallows eat almost nothing but insects captured in flight, although they occasionally take insects or larvae from land or water. They often hunt above water, fields, or wetlands and drink while skimming the surface. Monogamous pairs excavate nesting burrows together in stable soil, with the female lining the inner chamber. One clutch is usual each year. It contains one to nine white eggs, most commonly four or five, and incubation lasts 13 to 16 days. Both parents incubate and feed the nestlings. (Animal Diversity Web)