Fandango739
GeoBird
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SW Florida USA - which swallow? (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Fandango739
- Start date
birdmeister
Well-known member
I'd go for Purple Martin (deep notch in tail, large head, dingy gray underparts).
Fandango739
GeoBird
Still, I thought I saw some red around the collar on the second photo.
birdmeister
Well-known member
Ah, I see what you mean. To me, the same hue is on the bird's right wing, perhaps a product of low light photography.
Fandango739
GeoBird
So no chance of a Cliff or Barn? They both have been spotted in the area the last few days.
A barn swallow could lose a couple of tail-streamers - so that's an option. A cave swallow can't lose any combination of tail-feathers and finish up like this - so that's not an option. I guess it's a purple martin, for reasons given by Mr Meister - especially the mucky-looking rear body. The rufous (certainly some and probably all) is photo-artifact, as he has also explained. In my opinion.
AveryBartels
Well-known member
Agreed with others that I wouldn't trust any apparent colouring in photos of this quality. The bulky head is another feature in favour of Purple Martin which is what it looks like to me as well.
