© Chris Venetz | Ornis Birding Expeditions eBird S160405779 Macaulay Library ML 614310867
© Éric Francois Roualet
© Joachim Bertrands | Ornis Birding Expeditions
© Éric Francois Roualet
© Vivek Menon

Mosque Swallow Cecropis senegalensis

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Identification

POWERED BY MERLIN

This large swallow has rusty-red underparts, a pale buff throat, and a white leading edge to the underwing that is obvious only in flight. It is mostly resident, although it is also a wet season migrant to the north of its range. Pairs prefer wooded savanna, nesting in banks, termite mounds, and often holes in trees, particularly baobabs. The Mosque Swallow may be confused with the juvenile Rufous-chested Swallow, but it lacks the latter species’ dark “ear-flaps” and buffy forward part of the underwing.

POWERED BY MERLIN