Swallow Hirundo rustica
Breeding distribution change
Common and increasing summer/passage, breeds Europe, winters Africa (some Spain)
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Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2013
Atlas species lists
- Breeding distribution 1995–2000
- Summer abundance 1995–2000
- Winter distribution 1995–2000
- Winter abundance 1995–2000
- Breeding distribution 2007–2012
- Summer abundance 2007–2012
- Winter distribution 2007–2012
- Winter abundance 2007–2012
- Breeding distribution change
- Summer abundance change
- Winter distribution change
- Winter abundance change
More Swallow maps
- Breeding distribution 1995–2000
- Summer abundance 1995–2000
- Winter distribution 1995–2000
- Winter abundance 1995–2000
- Breeding distribution 2007–2012
- Summer abundance 2007–2012
- Winter distribution 2007–2012
- Winter abundance 2007–2012
- Breeding distribution change
- Summer abundance change
- Winter distribution change
- Winter abundance change
Map explanation
This map shows where changes occurred in the breeding season distribution of the species in Wiltshire between 1995-2000 and 2007-2012, as revealed by the fieldwork for Birds of Wiltshire (Wiltshire Ornithological Society 2007) and the shared fieldwork for Bird Atlas 2007-2011 (BTO 2013) and for Wiltshire Tetrad Atlas 2007-2012.
Gains and improvements
Status
Nos tetrads
Absent to present
26
3%
Present to breeding
141
15%
Absent to breeding
25
3%
No change
Status
Nos tetrads
Present in both
95
10%
Breeding in both
408
45%
Losses and declines
Status
Nos tetrads
Present to absent
11
1%
Breeding to present
193
21%
Breeding to absent
11
1%
Barn Swallows breed throughout the Northern Hemisphere. Most of the European breeders winter in sub-Saharan Africa, though a few go no farther than North Africa or southern Spain. The British population are among the farthest travellers, wintering in Namibia and South Africa.
Bird Atlas 2007-2011 recorded Barn Swallows breeding in 95% of 10km squares in Britain, which represents an increase of 3% since the 1968-72 Breeding Atlas. The only gaps were in central London and in a few areas in northern Scotland. But while overall distribution thus changed only marginally, relative abundance records showed a steady increase in numbers in north Britain and a decrease in southeast England. The species has always been among the latest summer migrants to depart, often not until well into November, and there have recently even been some attempts to overwinter.
Historical records in Wiltshire give few precise figures but suggest fluctuating numbers probably as a result of varying conditions on the migration routes. Recent records show a general pattern in line with the national figures: Birds of Wiltshire recorded Barn Swallows present in 859 tetrads (94%), with breeding in 612; WTA2 found them in more tetrads (888 = 97%) but with breeding in fewer (574).
References
The following references are used throughout these species accounts, in the abbreviated form given in quotation marks:
“1968-72 Breeding Atlas” – Sharrack, J.T.R. 1976: The Atlas of Breeding Birds in Britain and Ireland. T. & A. Poyser
“1981-84 Winter Atlas” – Lack, P.C. 1986: The Atlas of Wintering Birds in Britain and Ireland. T. & A. Poyser
“1988-91 Breeding Atlas” – Gibbons, D.W., Reid, J.B. & Chapman, R.A. 1993: The New Atlas of Breeding Birds in Britain and Ireland 1988-91. T. & A. Poyser
“Birds of Wiltshire” – Ferguson-Lees, I.J. et al. 2007: Birds of Wiltshire, published by the tetrad atlas group of the Wiltshire Ornithological Society after mapping fieldwork 1995-2000. Wiltshire Ornithological Society.
“Bird Atlas 2007-2011” – Balmer, D.E., Gillings, S., Caffrey, B.J., Swann, R.L., Downie, I.S. and Fuller, R.J. 2013: Bird Atlas 2007-2011: the Breeding and Wintering Birds of Britain and Ireland
“WTA2” – ("Wiltshire Tetrad Atlas 2 ") the present electronic publication, bringing together the Wiltshire data from “Birds of Wiltshire” and “Bird Atlas 2007-11”, together with data from further fieldwork carried out in 2011 and 2012.
"Hobby" - the annual bird report of the Wiltshire Ornithological Society.