Barn
Swallow
(HirundoRustica)
Photographed at Etobicoke Creek, Toronto, Canada May 2010
The Barn Swallow is the most abundant
and widely distributed swallow species in the world. It breeds throughout the
northern hemisphere and winters in much of the southern hemisphere.
The long tail of a Barn Swallow may
indicate the quality of the individual bird. Females prefer to mate with males
that have the longest and most symmetrical tails.
An unmated male Barn Swallow may kill
the nestlings of a nesting pair. His actions often succeed in breaking up the
pair and afford him the opportunity to mate with the female. Female Barn Swallows favour males
that have a darker reddish chest color
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