Woodswallows
(Artamidae)
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Suborder: Passeri (Oscines)
Family: Artamidae
Thumbnail description
Gregarious aerial foragers; mostly some combination of gray, black, and white, with pointed wings and short, stumpy tails
Size
4.7–7.9 in (13–20 cm); 0.5–1.6 oz (13–46 g)
Number of genera, species
1 genus; 11 species
Habitat
Woodswallows are birds of the open forest and woodlands, scrub, and clearings
Conservation status
Not threatened
Distribution
Six species occur in Australia, others through the islands of the South Pacific, across south China to India and Sri Lanka
Evolution and systematics
The taxonomic status of the woodswallows, sometimes called swallow-shrikes, is still under debate. Sibley and Monroe, grouped the woodswallows with the currawongs in the tribe Artamini, subfamily Corvinae, of the family Corvidae, and included several other genera on the basis of DNA-DNA hybridization data. Christidis and Boles in their standard 1994 classification of Australian birds included the woodswallows, butcherbirds, Australian magpies, and currawongs in the family Artamidae. Most recently, Schodde and Mason in their 1999 The Directory of Australian Birds: Passerines follow Christidis and Boles except for the order of genera.
Physical characteristics
Woodswallows are swallow-like birds with pointed wings and short tails that forage mainly by soaring and sweeping up flying insects. They are mostly subtle combinations of gray, white, and black, with several species having russet tones as well. Most species have white-tipped tails.
Woodswallows are the only passerines that have powder down patches of feathers that disintegrate into a soft powder that the birds use in grooming feathers in a manner analogous to preen gland secretions in other passerines. They have pointed wings with a vestigial outermost primary, short toes, and weak-grasping feet.
Distribution
Some species are widely distributed, e.g., the ashy woodswallow (Artamus fuscus) is found in the lowlands of southern Asia from India through southern China, while others have limited distribution, e.g., the Bismark woodswallow (Artamus insignis) is restricted to the Bismark Archipeligo. Six species are found in Australia, four of them endemic.
Habitat
Woodswallows are found in a broad spectrum of habitats throughout their range including mangroves, open areas, orchards, towns, open woodlands, forests, and forest edge.
Behavior
Highly gregarious, some woodswallow species are nomadic and travel in flocks of a hundred or more. They sometimes roost communally, with dozens of birds huddling together, perhaps to help with thermoregulation. When not foraging, they may cluster in large numbers on tree branches or wires. In winter they often join mixed species foraging flocks. They utter frequent soft contact calls, and may mob potential predators, while making harsh calls.
Feeding ecology and diet
Although woodswallows are primarily aerial foragers, sweeping flying insects from the canopy and above, they also are proficient ground pouncers, dropping from tree limbs to capture a grasshopper or caterpillar from open ground. These versatile foragers also take nectar and pollen.
Reproductive biology
Many species are opportunistic breeders, well adapted to an unpredictable environment, settling down to nest in loose colonies whenever rains come to arid areas. Nests are usually shallow, flimsy bowls of woven plant fibers including rootlets, twigs, and grass, placed in trees, shrubs, stumps, fence posts, or in rocky crevices. The usual clutch is two to four white eggs spotted or blotched with a variety of colors. Both parents incubate for 12–16 days. Fledging occurs 14-20 days later. Both parents and sometimes a helper feed the young.
Conservation status
Species with broad distributions are not threatened, but species with restricted distributions may be adversely affected by habitat alteration and human disturbance. At present, no woodswallows are considered threatened.
Significance to humans
Woodswallows are highly visible and asthetically pleasing birds, their soft, subtle coloration and dynamic flight making them favorites to many.
Species accounts
Black-faced woodswallowLittle woodswallow
Dusky woodswallow
White-breasted woodswallow
White-browed woodswallow
Resources
Books:Christidis, L., and W.E. Boles. The Taxonomy and Species of Birds of Australia and Its Territories. Hawthorn East, Victoria, Australia: Royal Australasian Ornithologists Union Monograph 2, 1994.
Pizzey, G., and F. Knight. The Graham Pizzey and Frank Knight Field Guide to the Birds of Australia. Sydney: HarperCollins, 1997.
Schodde, R., and I.J. Mason. The Directory of Australian Birds: Passerines. Canberra: CSIRO Wildlife and Ecology, 1999.
Schodde, R., and S. C. Tidemann, eds. Reader's Digest Complete Book of Australian Birds. 2nd ed. Sydney: Reader's Digest Services, 1986.
Sibley, C.G., and B.L. Monroe, Jr. Distribution and Taxonomy of Birds of the World. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1990.
Simpson, K., and N. Day. Birds of Australia. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1999.
Strahan, R., ed. Finches, Bowerbirds and Other Passerines of Australia. Sydney: Angus & Robertson, 1996.
[Article by: William E. Davis, Jr.]
