The dusky woodswallow is medium-sized and swallow-like,[citation needed] with a dark brown hue,[4] but there have been instances where the bird has appeared grey.[5] The birds have a black patch in front of the eyes,[citation needed] and grey (sometimes also black)[citation needed] wings with white streaks on them.[4][5][citation needed] The dusky woodswallow has a black, white-tipped tail[4][5][citation needed] with a silver underwing.[citation needed] The birds have a blue-grey bill capped with black.[4][5]
Dusky woodswallows are known to spontaneously 'wag' or swivel their tails fervently, a trait which is common among many other species of woodswallow.[5]
Relations to other woodswallows
In a significant difference from other woodswallows, dusky woodswallows have a distinctive white patch on the outer wing. Dusky woodswallows also seem to typically be more smoky brown than other species of woodswallow.[5] The little woodswallow, a smaller, darker woodswallow is also slightly more smoky brown that other woodswallows, but that is the only similarity that the latter has with the dusky woodswallow; the little woodswallow does not share a white patch on the outer wing.[5]
Dusky woodswallows adhere to seasonal migration and movements. The birds are a nomadic species, and tend to move quite spontaneously.[4] However, one certain change of habitat occurs for the south-eastern birds, who migrate northward for Autumn.[4]
Communally roosting birds, the dusky woodswallow has a variety of chattering calls which are used in certain situations. The most distinctive of these calls is perhaps the one which is used when a predator or intruder approaches, which consists of a harsh mobbing call to warn others.[citation needed]
Behaviour
Feeding and diet
Parent feeding chicks a wasp
The diet of the bird can be varied. They eat various forms of foliage and other grassy material that they find on the ground on in trees and shrubs. Dusky woodswallows have been seen eating termites, butterflies and other insects. They also eat nectar from flowers.[4][5] One notable aspect of their feeding habits is the way they hunt flying insects, which is done by picking them up on their wing.[5] They do, however, also eat their prey from the ground, and they often find inconspicuous places to perch while waiting for prey, such as utility lines and the like.[4] They have also been observed engaging in kleptoparasitism, working as a group to rob a restless flycatcher of its prey.[10]
Breeding
The nest of the dusky woodswallow consists of twigs, roots and other similar foliage matted together to form a bowl shape, which is lined with grass.[4] It is positioned safely, behind bark, and/or high in a treebranch, and sometimes in a hollowed out tree stump.[4] The nest is made during the period from August to January, and with the help of several birds.[citation needed] The mated pair will then guard the nest, while others will help them take care of the babies.[citation needed] The female lays white eggs, of which there are usually no more than three or four. While the incubation period lasts for sixteen days, the amount of time taken for fledgling can be this long to around twenty days.[citation needed]
The typical clutch is three to four in size, but this may vary.[5][9]
Conservation status
The dusky woodswallow has a very large range.[1] The population size of this bird has not yet been quantified or estimated. It is, however, expected to be as populous as other birds within its densest range labeled 'common'. Because of this, the dusky woodswallow is listed as a species of least concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) on the IUCN Red List.[1]
^Davis, William E. Jr (2006). "Dusky Woodswallows Artamus cyanopterus collaborate to kleptoparasitize a Restless Flycatcher Myiagra inquieta". Journal of Field Ornithology. 77 (3): 345. doi:10.1111/j.1557-9263.2006.00065_1.x.
Further reading
del Hoyo, Josep, A. Elliott, J. Sargatal, J. Cabot, Handbook of the Birds of the World Barcelona: Lynx Edicions, 1992.
Dickinson, Edward C., ed. The Howard and Moore Complete Checklist of the Birds of the World, 3rd edition Princeton, NJ and Oxford, U.K.: Princeton University Press, 2003.
Forshaw, Joseph, ed. Encyclopedia of Birds, 2nd ed. San Diego, CA: Academic Press, 1998.
Harrison, Colin James Oliver. Birds of the World London and New York: Dorling Kindersley, 1993.
Perrins, Christopher M., and Alex L. A. Middleton, eds. The Encyclopedia of Birds. New York: Facts on File, 1985.
