Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica) Richard A. Wolinski
Oakland Co., MI. June, 2007 © Robert Epstein This species is sponsored by Isaac R. Hunter.
(Click to view a comparison of Atlas I to II) The colorful Barn Swallow is the most proclaim the species a common summer resident and rare on Isle Royale. A description given by abundant and widely distributed member of the Payne (1993) is as a common transient and swallow family in Michigan. The glossy blue- summer resident, more widely distributed in the black plumage of the upperparts, reddish-brown LP than in the UP. forehead and throat, rusty undersides, and deeply forked tail with white spots leave little Breeding distribution as shown by MBBA I and doubt as to the identity of this species. MBBA II shows that overall distribution has
remained similar between the two survey The Barn Swallow is one of the mostly widely periods, but occupancy has generally declined distributed swallows in the temperate regions of about fifteen percent statewide based upon the the world (Rose and Turner 1989, Brown and number of occupied blocks. The ability to Brown 1999). In the western hemisphere it is confirm nesting for this species at the highest found throughout North America as a breeding level is high, with a total of 13.5% confirmed species, with its core distribution lying east of blocks. The largest change in terms of the the Rocky Mountains in the major agricultural number of unoccupied blocks appears areas from eastern Texas northward to the throughout the UP, with Schoolcraft County Upper Great Lakes states and southern Canada. showing only five blocks at some level of This species retreats to South America during breeding status, down from 21 (76%) during the non-breeding season (Rose and Turner 1989, MBBA I (Wolinski 1991). Brown and Brown 1999).
Breeding Biology Distribution This swallow is dependent upon two conditions This species’ historical distribution in Michigan, in order to breed successfully, a protected as reported by Barrows (1912), is not clearly location that offers a good attachment point for stated though the account indicates wide the nest and a source of mud for nest distribution; whereas Wood (1951) states that construction. The nest is constructed of mud or the species was a common summer resident and clay combined with grass or straw, and lined that it was first documented in the state by Sager with animal hair or feathers, and fine grasses (1839). Zimmerman and Van Tyne (1959) (Brown and Brown 1999). Natural locations for
© 2011 Kalamazoo Nature Center Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica) Richard A. Wolinski nesting are limited to rock overhangs and crevices, or the mouths of caves, situations Conservation Needs seldom found in Michigan. The Barn Swallow The Barn Swallow remains one of the most therefore benefited greatly from European abundant nesting species in the state and no settlement, particularly as agriculture took hold conservation action appears to be warranted at and human structures in the form of open sheds the present time. The species is not listed as a and large barns with many rough-hewn beams species of conservation concern in any national and large openings were constructed. These conservation plan; though see Lepage (2007) buildings were kept open for the movement of where aerial insectivores have been identified as livestock and allowed access by the swallows. a priority group for conservation actions by The development of road and highway systems Ontario Partners in Flight. also benefited this swallow. Bridges over rivers and streams, even where farming was limited, provided adequate protected locations with attachment points for nests into the forested portions of the northern LP and much of the UP, where breeding opportunities would otherwise have been restricted to many fewer natural sites such as rock overhangs or crevices. It should also be noted that this species nests below piers and in boathouses along the shorelines of the Great Lakes and inland lakes which accounts for its distribution along forested shorelines in the northern LP and UP and many Great Lakes islands.
Abundance and Population Trends Recent changes in farm size, operations, and building construction materials for farm equipment storage, have provided fewer nesting sites for the Barn Swallow even as older barns and sheds have fallen into disrepair or have been shuttered. These changes are enough to affect population levels statewide and in part, nesting distribution, particularly in those inland areas that had few suitable nesting structures during the 19th and 20th centuries in the UP and parts of the northern LP. The relative abundance of the Barn Swallow as shown by BBS route data indicates a statistically significant decline from 1983 to 2007 for USFWS Region 3 (Sauer et al. 2008). Similar declines have been reported by atlas projects in New York (Medler 2008) and Ontario, Canada (Lepage 2007), and have been noted for all of North America by Brown and Brown (1999).
© 2011 Kalamazoo Nature Center Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica) Richard A. Wolinski
Literature Cited Wood, N.P. 1951. The Birds of Michigan. MP75. University of Michigan Museum of Barrows, W.B. 1912. Michigan Bird Life. Zoology. Ann Arbor, MI. Special Bulletin. Michigan Agricultural Zimmerman, D.A., and J. Van Tyne. 1959. A College. Lansing, MI. Distributional Checklist of the Birds of Brown, C.R., and M.B. Brown. 1999. Barn Michigan. OP 608. University of Michigan Swallow (Hirundo rustica). In The Birds of Museum of Zoology. Ann Arbor, MI. North America, No. 452 (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.) The Birds of North America, Suggested Citation Inc., Philadelphia, PA. Cook, A.J. 1893. Birds of Michigan, 2nd edition. Wolinski, R.A. 2011. Barn Swallow (Hirundo Bulletin 94. Michigan Agricultural rustica). In Chartier, A.T., J.J. Baldy, and Experimental Station, Lansing, MI. J.M. Brenneman (eds.). 2010-2011. The Lepage, D. 2007. In Cadman, M.D., D.A. Second Michigan Breeding Bird Atlas. Sutherland, G.G. Beck, D. Lepage, and A.R. Kalamazoo Nature Center. Kalamazoo, MI. Couturier (eds). Atlas of the Breeding Birds Accessed online at:
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