Search results
Species Migration Maps show the movements of a single species as it travels throughout the hemisphere each year. Bird Species Locations Conservation Challenges. Take Action. See where the Cliff Swallow travels throughout the hemisphere each year.
- Audubon Field Guide
Migration & Range Maps. A long-distance migrant, wintering...
- Audubon Field Guide
Migration & Range Maps. A long-distance migrant, wintering in southern South America. Migrates in flocks, traveling by day.
The cliff swallow is famous for their regular migration to San Juan Capistrano, California. [14] They nest at the church of Mission San Juan Capistrano , where their annual migration is culturally celebrated.
Cliff Swallows routinely flock with other swallow species during migration and foraging, but there is no evidence of any cooperative or commensal feeding with these species. In mixed-species perching flocks, Cliff Swallows attack Bank and Barn swallows and drive them off wires.
Migration: always via Central America. Departs winter range in early February. Arrives in southern California in early February, Arizona in early March, Illinois in early April, and Alaska...
Although the Cliff Swallow can nest solitarily, it usually nests in colonies. Colonies tend to be small in the East, but further west they can number up to 3,700 nests in one spot. Within a Cliff Swallow colony some swallows lay eggs in another swallow's nest.
Cliff Swallows are the most colonial swallow in the world, regularly forming colonies of 200–1,000 nests, with a maximum of 3,700 nests in one Nebraska site. They preen, feed, drink, and bathe in groups, and they continue sticking together in large flocks during migration and on their wintering grounds.