| Tachycineta | |
|---|---|
| Tree swallow (Tachycineta bicolor) | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Passeriformes |
| Family: | Hirundinidae |
| Subfamily: | Hirundininae |
| Genus: | Tachycineta Cabanis, 1851 |
| Type species | |
| Hirundo thalassina[1] Swainson, 1827 | |
| Species | |
see text | |
| Map includes former distribution in Jamaica | |
Tachycineta is agenus of birds in the swallow familyHirundinidae. There are nine described species all restricted to theAmericas.
These are slender swallows with forked tails. Most species have a metallic green back, green or blue head, and metallic blue or unglossed brown wings. All have pure white underparts, and four species have a white rump.
MostTachycineta swallows are at least partiallymigratory, with onlygolden andmangrove swallow being essentially resident. All the species use natural or disused cavities for nest sites.
The genusTachycineta was introduced by the German ornithologistsJean Cabanisin 1850 with theviolet-green swallow (Tachycineta thalassina) as thetype species.[2][3] The genus name is fromAncient Greektakhukinētos meaning "moving quickly".[4]
The genus contains nine species,[5]divided into two sub-clades that are associated with geography: a North American/Caribbean clade and a South/Central American clade.[6]
| Image | Scientific name | Common name | Distribution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tachycineta bicolor | Tree swallow | north-central Alaska and up to the tree line in Canada and as far south as Tennessee in the eastern part of its range, California and New Mexico in the west, and Kansas in the centre | |
| Tachycineta cyaneoviridis | Bahama swallow | northern Bahamas: Andros, Grand Bahama, Abaco, and New Providence | |
| Tachycineta thalassina | Violet-green swallow | central Alaska down to Mexico | |
| Tachycineta euchrysea | Golden swallow | Hispaniola and formerly Jamaica | |
| Tachycineta albilinea | Mangrove swallow | native to Mexico and all of Central America (Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama) | |
| Tachycineta leucorrhoa | White-rumped swallow | Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, Peru, and Uruguay | |
| Tachycineta leucopyga | Chilean swallow | Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Falkland Islands, Paraguay, and Uruguay. | |
| Tachycineta stolzmanni | Tumbes swallow | northwestern Peru and far southwestern Ecuador. | |
| Tachycineta albiventer | White-winged swallow | tropical South America from Colombia, Venezuela, and Trinidad south to northern Argentina. |
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