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Violet-Green Swallow: New to Ontario by Peter Burke

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Violet-Green Swallow: New to Ontario by Peter Burke 6 Violet-green Swallow: New to Ontario by Peter Burke A white-bellied swallow being blown beady eye on a white face. Suddenly south by cold northerly winds flew we realized that we were indeed high over the heads of Dawn hosting a stray Violet-green Swallow Brenner, Mark Dugdale, and Peter (T. thalassina)! Burke at about 0945h on 28 October The bird stayed around the tip for 1992, at the tip of the Sleeping Giant the rest of the day, flying low over (Thunder Bay District, Ontario) on the shoreline and grassy clearing. It Lake Superior. Tree Swallows favoured the lee side of the point, (Tachycineta bicolor) are normally presumably finding more shelter and gone by early August from Northern food. Several attempts were made to Ontario, therefore suspicions were immediately raised about the identity net the bird, but all failed. It of this bird. Alas, we could only maintained a steady, powerful flight speculate (sadly) as it quickly involving very litte soaring, and made continued south. After the fourth low sweeps which were repeated over one particular area at a time. It member of our party, Dave Shepherd, seemed very trusting and would fly joined us, we watched the swallow within one metre of an observer. descend and disappear over the chop Standing at the forest's edge, we of the lake. Having enjoyed Ontario's could enjoy the beautiful golden and first Black-throated Sparrow purple flashes of the bird's mantle as (Amphispiza bilineata) just weeks it passed over the shoreline rocks. It before at nearby Silver Islet was so fast that viewing with (Henshaw and Kerr 1992), we felt binoculars was difficult. that a second rarity had likely just On 29 October, the day dawned eluded us. at a temperature of minus 7°e, Not five minutes later, and with raising doubts that the swallow had our attention directed back to the survived the night. But at 0900h, I north, Dawn announced that the found it again cruising the east shore. swallow had returned, and was flying Then it settled on a serviceberry right above our heads! This time we (Amelanchier sp.) branch, appearing could see much more of the bird as it weakened by the cold. This was the quickly turned and dove at treetop first opportunity to observe its level, allowing brief glimpses of its brilliant plumage in detail. In dull back and head. Due to overcast skies, light, it was nearly identical to a Tree iridescence was absent from the Swallow except for the very bird's plumage. However, we could prominent white edgings to the all see the extensive white patches on tertials. This is a feature of freshly the sides of the rump (reminding moulted birds; the white has mostly Mark, a visiting British birder, of a or entirely worn off by spring (Bent House Martin (Delichon urbica) which 1942, Oberholser 1973). The face was has an entirely white rump), and the very gentle looking, due to near ONTARIO BIRDS APRIL 1993 7 Figure 1: Violet-green Swallow-in-flight. Photo by Peter Burke. Figure 2: Violet-green Swallow perched on mist net. Photo by Peter Burke. VOLUME 11 NUMBER 1 8 isolation of the dark eyes against from Alaska to California, south into white feathering. When in full the Mexican highlands of Oaxaca and sunlight, the stunning iridescence of Veracruz. It breeds as far east as greens, blues, purples, and bronze southwestern Saskatchewan, western treated the eye. Most of the nape was South Dakota and western Nebraska reddish purple, bordered by greenish­ (AOU 1983). Three races are bronze of the back and forehead. In recognized, with lepida being the certain lights the back also appeared most widespread, and breeding from extensively purple. The secondary Alaska to northern Mexico. The other coverts were bright forest green, the two subspecies breed in Mexico only colour of wet Balsam Fir (Abies (Turner and Rose 1989). Our balsamea). The tertials, secondaries, individual appeared to fall under the primaries and tail showed deep green nominate lepida due to the extensive or navy blue depending on the angle violet colour of the mantle, a feature of light. Such coloration indicated the not shared by the other two bird was a male. Furthermore, subspecies (Turner and Rose 1989). because of the presence of old, Violet-green Swallows are early greyish, worn flight feathers, and spring migrants and nesters, ready to subtle smudges to the facial area, we move south by mid- to late July in felt confident that this individual was the northern parts of their range an immature moulting into its first (Bent 1942). The main winter range winter plumage. extends from southern Baja California Later the swallow sluggishly flew and central Mexico to EI Salvador to our furled mist nets, where it and Honduras (Turner and Rose spent the morning huddled and 1989). tolerant of our close approach. When For a bird which migrates and a Northern Shrike (Lanius excubitor) spends so much time on the wing, it perched nearby, the swallow has been recorded as a stray immediately flew, giving a sharp, double-noted call. Also, when surprisingly few times. It is a casual perched in the sun, it gave a softer visitor to the Aleutians, east to call, much like a Common Redpoll's Manitoba (four records) (Godfrey (earduelis flammea) "chiff-chiff". At 1986, Gollop 1988, A. Wormington midday, the swallow sprang to life pers. comm. J, North Dakota, Missouri with the sun's warmth, and fed and central Texas (Turner and Rose actively on numerous insects. We last 1989). In the East, it has been saw it later that day, still feeding. But recorded only a handful of times after another cold night, it did not (Table 1). Despite this fact, many reappear on 30 October. The only Ontario birders have predicted its other observer to make the long 13 occurrence in this province, likely because so many other species of the km haul by foot and bike to the tip to Canadian Rockies have turned up at see the swallow was Nick Escott of one time or another, and some are Thunder Bay. now regular, such as Varied Thrush The Violet-green Swallow is (Ixoreus naevius). Indeed, Bruce normally distributed in breeding DiLabio of Ottawa correctly predicted season in western North America, this record in 1982 by stating that ONTARIO BIRDS APRIL 1993 9 Table 1: Violet-green Swallow Records in the East. StateI Province Status Source Nova Scotia One record; 30 October 1965, Tufts 1986 Cresent Beach, Lunenburg County. Generally accepted, but undocumented. New Hampshire One record; mid- September 1965. Tufts 1986 Also undocumented. Florida Extremely rare vagrant. Desante and Pyle 1986 Illinois One record; 4 May 1897, Calumet region. Bent 1942 Specimen. Ohio One record; 16 May 1990, Holmes County. Peterjohn 1990 Photograph. New Jersey One record; 8 November 1992, Cape May. Anonymous 1992 Minnesota Extremely rare vagrant. Desante and Pyle 1986 Violet-green Swallow would turn up Acknowledgements on the shore of Lake Superior in Thanks go to Ron Tozer and Ron October (Wormington 1982)! Pittaway for assisting in the literature review and helpful comments. Alan Summary Wormington provided information on previous records from eastern Canada We recorded a first fall male and Ohio. Also, Dawn Brenner, Phill Violet-green Swallow at the tip of the Holder and Brian Henshaw provided Sleeping Giant on 28 and 29 October useful comments in the preparation 1992. This is the second record in of this article. Canada east of Manitoba, where it is casual, and the first to be fully documented. The sighting has been Literature cited accepted as the first for the province American Ornithologists' Union. 1983. by the Ontario Bird Records Check-list of North American Birds, 6th Committee (Margaret Bain, pers. edition. American Ornithologists' Union, comm. 1993). This species is Washington, D.C. extremely rare east of the Mississippi, Anonymous. 1992. Good birds from the hotline, with only five states having recorded November 1992. Winging It (American it, and most of these only once. This Birding Association) 4(12): 3. record also fits the pattern of Lake Bent, A.C. 1942. Life Histories of North Superior's fantastic reputation for late American Flycatchers, Larks, Swallows, and fall western vagrants. One can't help Their Allies. United States National Museum but wonder what will occur next! Bulletin 179. VOLUME 11 NUMBER 1 10 Desante D. and P. Pyle. 1986. Distributional Peterjohn, B.G. 1990. Middlewestern Prairie Checklist of North American Birds. Volume 1. Region. American Birds 44: 432-439. Artemesia Press, Lee Vining, California. Tufts, R. W. 1986. Birds of Nova Scotia. Third Godfrey, W.E. 1986. The Birds of Canada. Edition. Nova Scotia Museum, Halifax. Second Edition. National Museum of Canada, Turner, A. and C. Rose. 1989. Swallows and Ottawa. Martins. Houghton Mifflin Co., Boston. Gollop, B. 1988. Prairie Provinces Region. Wormington, A. 1982. Trends in the Ontario American Birds 42: 450-451. list of birds: past. present and future. Henshaw, B. and H. Kerr. 1992. Ontario Birdfinding in Canada 9: 15-17, 19. round-up. Birders Journal 1: 310-318. Oberholser, H.C. 1973. The Bird Life of Texas. Volume Two. University of Texas Press, Austin, Texas. Peter Burke, R.R. 10, Peterborough, Ontario K9J 6Y2 Publication Notice Field Checklist of Birds for the Southern James Bay Region. 1992. By Doug McRae. Available from Moose River Naturalists, Box 699, Moosonee, Ontario POL 1YO. $1.00 + 0.50 (postage & handling). This checklist provides a compilation of data on the 292 extant species of birds known to have occurred in the vicinity of Moosonee and Moose Factory. It pro­ vides a general indication of the status of each species in the region, and further in­ dicates the regularity of breeding of each species.
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