Artamus cyanopterus
The Dusky Woodswallow (Artamus cyanopterus) is a captivating passerine endemic to Australia, recognized by its sleek, sooty dark brown plumage and distinct flight profile. Measuring approximately 18-20 cm (7.1-7.9 in) in length and weighing 35-40 g (1.2-1.4 oz), it features striking blackish wings adorned with a prominent white flash or stripe on the outer primaries, a black tail, and a stout blue-grey bill with a black tip. A key field mark is its characteristic gliding flight, often intersp...
This species primarily inhabits open woodlands, particularly eucalypt forests, mallee, and coastal heaths, but also adapts to agricultural areas, parks, and gardens, from sea level up to around 1000 meters.
Their diet consists predominantly of flying insects, such as moths, beetles, grasshoppers, and bees, captured through aerial hawking. They will also supplement their insect intake with nectar from flowering plants.
Dusky Woodswallows are highly social and diurnal, often forming large flocks of dozens to hundreds of individuals outside the breeding season, roosting communally and huddling tightly together on branches for warmth and safety. Their primary foraging strategy involves aerial hawking, where they l...
The Dusky Woodswallow is endemic to Australia, with its range spanning across eastern, south-eastern, and south-western parts of the mainland, and throughout Tasmania. Two subspecies are generally recognized: *A. c. cyanopterus* found across eastern Australia and Tasmania, and *A. c. perthi* rest...
Least Concern
- Dusky Woodswallows are famous for their 'caravaning' behavior, where they huddle together in large, dense groups on branches, sometimes dozens strong, to conserve warmth on cold nights. - Despite their name, they are not closely related to true swallows (family Hirundinidae); their name comes f...