Barn Swallow
Hirundo rustica
Swallows (Hirundinidae) · Passeriformes (Passeriformes)
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Often mixed up with
In quizzes, players most often confuse Barn Swallow with these birds—either this species was picked by mistake, or the other way around.
| Species | Mix-ups |
|---|---|
| Western House Martin Delichon urbicum | 145 |
| Red-rumped Swallow Cecropis daurica | 136 |
| Sand Martin Riparia riparia | 108 |
| Common Swift Apus apus | 22 |
| Cliff Swallow Petrochelidon pyrrhonota | 16 |
Family
The swallows, martins, and saw-wings, or Hirundinidae, are a family of passerine songbirds found around the world on all continents, including occasionally in Antarctica. Highly adapted to aerial feeding, they have a distinctive appearance. The term "swallow" is used as the common name for Hirundo rustica in the United Kingdom and Ireland.
Order
A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin passer 'sparrow' and formis '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines generally have an anisodactyl arrangement of their toes (three pointing forward and one back), which facilitates perching. With more than 140 families and some 6,500 identified species, Passeriformes is the largest order of birds and one of the most diverse clades of terrestrial vertebrates, representing 60% of …