Hirundinidae

Tree swallow Tachycineta bicolor, photographed by Callie Bowdish.

Belongs within: Sylvioidea.
Contains: Psalidoprocne, Cecropis, Petrochelidon, Hirundo.

The Hirundinidae contains the swallows and martins, highly aerial insectivorous birds found worldwide. Swallows have long, pointed wings, and can only walk with some difficulty.

Characters (from Austin 1961): Small, about 10-23 cm long; body small, plumage compact. Bill small, triangular; gape wide; facial bristles present. Bronchial rings incompletely developed. Wings with nine primaries. Tail with twelve feathers.

<==Hirundinidae
    |  i. s.: Hylochelidon nigricans (Vieillot 1817) R85
    |         Iridoprocne bicolor A61
    |--Pseudochelidon Hartlaub 1861 [Pseudochelidoninae] B94
    |    |--P. eurystomina DL94
    |    `--P. sirintarae JF06
    `--Hirundininae B94
         |--+--+--+--Cheramoeca leucosternus (Gould 1841) JF06, L03 (see below for synonymy)
         |  |  |  `--Pseudhirundo griseopyga [=Hirundo griseopyga] JF06
         |  |  `--Psalidoprocne JF06
         |  `--+--+--Delichon Horsfield & Moore 1854 JF06, M02 [incl. Chelidon Boie 1822 B94]
         |     |  |    |--D. urbica (Linnaeus 1758) JF06, M02 [=Hirundo urbica M02]
         |     |  |    |    |--D. u. urbica L03
         |     |  |    |    `--D. u. meridionalis (Hartert 1910) [=Hirundo urbica meridionalis] L03
         |     |  |    `--+--D. dasypus JF06
         |     |  |       |    |--D. d. dasypus L03
         |     |  |       |    `--D. d. nigrimentalis (Hartert 1910) [=Hirundo urbica nigrimentalis] L03
         |     |  |       `--D. nipalense JF06
         |     |  |            |--D. n. nipalense L03
         |     |  |            `--D. n. cuttingi Mayr 1941 L03
         |     |  `--+--Cecropis JF06
         |     |     `--Petrochelidon JF06
         |     `--+--Hirundo JF06
         |        `--Ptyonoprogne Reichenbach 1850 JF06, B94 [incl. Biblis Lesson 1837 B94; Biblidinae]
         |             |--P. rupestris JF06
         |             `--+--P. concolor [=Hirundo concolor] JF06
         |                `--P. fuligula [=Hirundo fuligula] JF06
         |                     |--P. f. fuligula L03
         |                     |--‘Hirundo’ f. buchanani (Hartert 1921) [=Riparia obsoleta buchanani] L03
         |                     |--‘Hirundo’ f. perpallida Vaurie 1951 [=H. obsoleta perpallida] L03
         |                     `--‘Hirundo’ f. presaharica Vaurie 1953 [=H. obsoleta presaharica] L03
         `--+--+--‘Riparia’ cincta JF06
            |  |    |--R. c. cincta L03
            |  |    |--R. c. parvula Amadon 1954 L03
            |  |    `--R. c. suahelica van Someren 1922 L03
            |  `--Phedina JF06
            |       |--P. borbonica JF06
            |       `--P. brazzae JF06
            `--+--Riparia Forster 1817 JF06, M02 (see below for synonymy)
               |    |--R. riparia (Linnaeus 1758) [=Hirundo riparia] M02
               |    |--‘Cotyle’ concolor B66
               |    |--R. diluta S02
               |    |--‘Cotyle’ eques Hartlaub in Dohrn 1866 D66
               |    |--R. paludicola (Vieillot 1817) L03
               |    |    |--R. p. paludicola [incl. Cotile pembertoni Hartert 1902] L03
               |    |    `--R. p. ducis Reichenow 1908 [incl. R. p. dohertyi Hartert 1910] L03
               |    `--‘Cotyle’ palustris S66
               |--Tachycineta JF06
               |    |--+--T. bicolor JF06
               |    |  |--T. cyaneoviridis JF06
               |    |  `--+--T. euchrysea JF06
               |    |     `--T. thalassina JF06
               |    `--+--T. stolzmanni JF06
               |       |--+--T. albilinea (Lawrence 1863) JF06, L03 [=Petrochelidon albilinea L03]
               |       |  `--T. albiventer (Boddaert 1783) JF06, L03 (see below for synonymy)
               |       `--+--T. leucorrhoa JF06
               |          `--T. meyeni JF06
               `--+--+--Stelgidopteryx JF06
                  |  |    |--S. ruficollis (Vieillot 1817) L03
                  |  |    |    |--S. r. ruficollis [incl. Hirundo jugularis Wied 1820] L03
                  |  |    |    |--S. r. fulvipennis FS55
                  |  |    |    `--S. r. uropygialis (Lawrence 1863) [=Cotyle uropygialis] L03
                  |  |    `--S. serripennis SS66
                  |  `--Progne Boie 1826 JF06, B94 [Progninae]
                  |       |  i. s.: P. modesta L03
                  |       |         P. tapera (Linné 1766) (see below for synonymy) L03
                  |       |--P. murphyi Chapman 1925 JF06, L03 [=P. modesta murphyi L03]
                  |       |--P. subis JF06
                  |       |--+--P. chalybea JF06
                  |       |  `--P. elegans JF06
                  |       `--+--P. sinaloae JF06
                  |          `--+--P. cryptoleuca JF06
                  |             `--P. dominicensis JF06
                  `--+--+--‘Atticora’ fasciata JF06
                     |  `--+--Neochelidon tibialis JF06
                     |     |    |--N. t. tibialis L03
                     |     |    |--N. t. griseiventris Chapman 1924 L03
                     |     |    `--N. t. minima Chapman 1924 [=N. tibialis minimus] L03
                     |     `--‘Notiochelidon’ pileata JF06
                     `--+--+--Pygochelidon cyanoleuca (Vieillot 1817) JF06, L03 [=Notiochelidon cyanoleuca JF06]
                        |  |    |--P. c. cyanoleuca [incl. Hirundo minuta Wied 1821] L03
                        |  |    `--‘Notiochelidon’ c. peruviana (Chapman 1922) [=Pygochelidon patagonica peruviana] L03
                        |  `--Atticora JF06
                        |       |--A. cyanoleuca SS66
                        |       `--A. melanoleuca (Wied 1820) [=Hirundo melanoleuca] L03
                        `--+--Alopochelidon fucata [=Stelgidopteryx fucata] JF06
                           `--Notiochelidon JF06
                                |--N. flavipes (Chapman 1922) JF06, L03 [=Pygochelidon flavipes L03]
                                `--+--N. murina JF06
                                   `--Haplochelidon andecola [=Hirundo andecola] JF06

Cheramoeca leucosternus (Gould 1841) JF06, L03 [incl. C. leucosternum marngli Mathews 1912 L03, C. leucosternum stonei Mathews 1912 L03]

Progne tapera (Linné 1766) [incl. Phaeoprogne tapera immaculata Chapman 1912, Hirundo pascuum Wied 1830] L03

Riparia Forster 1817 JF06, M02 [incl. Clivicola Forster 1817 B94, Cotile Boie 1822 B94; Clivicolinae, Cotilinae]

Tachycineta albiventer (Boddaert 1783) JF06, L03 [=Hirundo albiventer L03, Iridoprocne albiventer L03; incl. Hirundo aequatorialis Lawrence 1866 L03, H. aequitorialis L03]

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

[A61] Austin, O. L., Jr. 1961. Birds of the World: A survey of the twenty-seven orders and one hundred and fifty-five families. Paul Hamlyn: London.

[B94] Bock, W. J. 1994. History and nomenclature of avian family-group names. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 222: 1-281.

[B66] Bulger, G. E. 1866. List of birds observed at Wellington, Neilgherry Hills, about 6000 feet above the level of the sea, during the months of April and May, 1866. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London 1866: 568-571.

[DL94] Dinesen, L., T. Lehmberg, J. O. Svendsen, L. A. Hansen & J. Fjeldså. 1994. A new genus and species of perdicine bird (Phasianidae, Perdicini) from Tanzania, a relict form with Indo-Malayan affinities. Ibis 136: 2-11.

[D66] Dohrn, H. 1866. Synopsis of the birds of Ilha do Principe, with some remarks on their habits and descriptions of new species. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London 1866: 324-332.

[FS55] Felten, H., & J. Steinbacher. 1955. Zur Vogelfauna von El Salvador. Senckenbergiana Biologica 36 (1-2): 9-19.

[JF06] Jønsson, K. A., & J. Fjeldså. 2006. A phylogenetic supertree of oscine passerine birds. Zoologica Scripta 35: 149-186.

[L03] LeCroy, M. 2003. Type specimens of birds in the American Museum of Natural History. Part 5. Passeriformes: Alaudidae, Hirundinidae, Motacillidae, Campephagidae, Pycnonotidae, Irenidae, Laniidae, Vangidae, Bombycillidae, Dulidae, Cinclidae, Troglodytidae, and Mimidae. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 278: 1-156.

[M02] Mlíkovský, J. 2002. Cenozoic Birds of the World. Part 1: Europe. Ninox Press: Praha.

[R85] Robertson, C. J. R. (ed.) 1985. Reader’s Digest Complete Book of New Zealand Birds. Reader’s Digest: Sydney.

[S02] Santharam, V. 2002. Sight records of the sand martin Riparia riparia in southern India. Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society 99 (3): 529-530.

[S66] Sclater, P. L. 1866. Report on birds collected at Windvogelberg, South Africa, by Capt. G. E. Bulger, C. M. Z. S. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London 1866: 21-23.

[SS66] Sclater, P. L., & O. Salvin. 1866. Catalogue of birds collected by Mr. E. Bartlett on the River Uyacali, Eastern Peru, with notes and descriptions of new species. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London 1866: 175-201.