Common Names
Click on the language to view common names.
Common Names in English:
Gray Breasted Martin, Gray-Breasted Martin, Grey-Breasted Martin, White-Bellied Martin
Common Names in French:
Hirondelle Chalybée
Common Names in German:
Graubrustschwalbe
Common Names in Japanese:
ハイムネムラサキツバメ
Common Names in Spanish:
Golondrina Acerada
Common Names in unspecified:
Gray-Breasted Martin
Description
Family Hirundinidae
A Family of birds that is adapted to feeding on flying insects in the air : they have slender bodies, long pointed wings, short bills, strong bills, a wide gape , and great maneuverability and endurance. Their legs are short and their front toes are partially joined, so their walk is awkward, and their feet are better suited to perching.
Physical Description
Adult Female: Head : Crown: dusky with steel-blue feather tips Neck: Sides: gray-white Body: Back: dusky with steel-blue feather tips Underparts: gray-white Upperparts: dusky with steel-blue feather tips Tail: blackish with bluish gloss Undertail Coverts: dusky with steel-blue feather tips.Adult Male: Head: Crown: glossy blue-black Face : gray-brown Neck: Nape: glossy blue-black Throat : gray-brown Body: Lower Belly: white Upper Belly: white with dusky streaks Chest: gray-brown Flanks: gray-brown Upperparts: glossy blue-black Tail: Crissum: white.
Size/Age/Growth
About 7 inches long, with a wingspan of 15 to 15 inches. Adults weigh about 1.5 ounces .
Habitat
Vegetation: arid lowland scrubs, second-growth scrub, arid lowland scrubs, pastures and agricultural lands • Maximum Elevation: 1,700 meters • Foraging Strata: Aerial • Center of Abundance: Lower tropical: lowlands, lower than 500 m.; tropics. • Sensitivity to Disturbancet: Low
Typically found at an altitude of 0 to 2,033 meters (0 to 6,670 feet).Mean = 304.690 meters (999.639 feet), Standard Deviation = 782.600 based on 113 observations. Altitude information for each observation from British Oceanographic Data Centre.
Ecology:
List of Habitats
:14.2Artificial/Terrestrial - Pastureland
14.6Artificial/Terrestrial - Subtropical/Tropical Heavily Degraded Former Forest
Biology
Migration
Northern birds migrate
Taxonomy
- Domain:
Eukaryota
(
)
- Whittaker & Margulis,1978
- Kingdom:
Animalia
()
- Linnaeus, 1758
- animals
- Subkingdom:
Bilateria
()
- (Hatschek, 1888) Cavalier-Smith, 1983
- Branch:
Deuterostomia
()
- Grobben, 1908
- Infrakingdom:
Chordonia
()
- (Haeckel, 1874) Cavalier-Smith, 1998
- Phylum:
Chordata
()
- Bateson, 1885
- Chordates
- Subphylum:
Vertebrata
()
- Cuvier, 1812
- Vertebrates
- Infraphylum:
Gnathostomata
()
- Auct.
- Jawed Vertebrates
- Superclass:
Tetrapoda
()
- Goodrich, 1930
- Class:
Aves
()
- Linnaeus, 1758
- Birds
- Subclass:
Neornithes
()
- Gadow, 1893
- Infraclass:
Neoaves
()
- Superorder:
Passerimorphae
()
- Order:
Passeriformes
()
- C. Linnaeus, 1758
- Perching Birds
- Suborder:
Passeri
()
- Parvorder:
Passerida
()
- Superfamily:
Sylvioidea
()
- Family:
Hirundinidae
()
- Swallows and Martins
- Subfamily:
Hirundininae
()
- Genus:
Progne
()
- Gould, 1837
- Specific name:
chalybea
- (J. F. Gmelin, 1789)
- Scientific name: - Progne chalybea (J. F. Gmelin, 1789)
- Specific name:
chalybea
- (J. F. Gmelin, 1789)
- Genus:
Progne
(
- Subfamily:
Hirundininae
(
- Family:
Hirundinidae
(
- Superfamily:
Sylvioidea
(
- Parvorder:
Passerida
(
- Suborder:
Passeri
(
- Order:
Passeriformes
(
- Superorder:
Passerimorphae
(
- Infraclass:
Neoaves
(
- Subclass:
Neornithes
(
- Class:
Aves
(
- Superclass:
Tetrapoda
(
- Infraphylum:
Gnathostomata
(
- Subphylum:
Vertebrata
(
- Phylum:
Chordata
(
- Infrakingdom:
Chordonia
(
- Branch:
Deuterostomia
(
- Subkingdom:
Bilateria
(
- Kingdom:
Animalia
(
Unambiguous Synonyms
- Progne chalybea (J. F. Gmelin, 1789)
Notes
Name Status: Accepted Name . Latest taxonomic scrutiny: 17-Oct-2001
Similar Species
Northern Rough-Winged Swallow, Purple Martin
Members of the genus Progne
There are approximately 24 species in this genus:
P. chalybea (Gray Breasted Martin) · P. chalybea chalybea (Gray-Breasted Martin) · P. chalybea domestica · P. chalybea macrorhamphus · P. cryptoleuca (Cuban Martin) · P. domestica · P. dominicensis (Caribbean Martin) · P. dominicensis cryptoleuca · P. dominicensis dominicensis · P. dominicensis sinaloae · P. elegans (Southern Martin) · P. modesta · P. modesta elegans · P. modesta murphyi · P. murphyi · P. purpurea · P. sinaloae (Sinaloa Martin) · P. subis (Purple Martin) · P. subis arboricola · P. subis hesperia (Purple Martin) · P. subis subis (Purple Martin) · P. tapera (Brown-Chested Martin) · P. tapera fusca · P. tapera tapera
Bibliography
- Alsop, Fred J. III. Birds of North America - Eastern Region. First American Edition. Smithsonian Handbooks. DK Publishing, Inc. 2001.
- Bird Reference Citations. The numbers inserted in the text accounts above (usually in bold) refer to references. For further details on these references, click on the BirdLife International link above to go to the specific species account on the BirdLife web site. In some cases, particularly in the taxonomic notes, the references are cited using the author names. Details for these can be found on the BirdLife International web site at the following two places: For References from A–L. For References from M–Z.
- BirdLife International. 2000. Threatened Birds of the World. Lynx Edicions and BirdLife International, Barcelona, Spain and Cambridge, U.K.
- BirdLife International. 2004 Threatened Birds of the World 2004. CD-ROM. BirdLife International, Cambridge, U.K.
More Info
- Search for Pictures: images.google.com
- Search for Scholarly Articles: Google Scholar
- Search using Scientific Name and Vernacular Names: All the Web | AltaVista Canada | AltaVista | Excite | Google | HotBot | Lycos
- Search using Specialized Databases: GenBank | Medline | Scirus | CISTI/CAL | Agricola Periodicals | Agricola Books
Notes
Contributors
- BirdLife International 2004. In IUCN 2008. 2008 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCNRedList.org. Downloaded July 18, 2008.
- Bisby, F.A., Y.R. Roskov, M.A. Ruggiero, T.M. Orrell, L.E. Paglinawan, P.W. Brewer, N. Bailly, J. van Hertum, eds (2007). Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life: 2007 Annual Checklist. Species 2000: Reading, U.K.
- Brands, S.J. (comp.) 1989-2006. Systema Naturae 2000. The Taxonomicon. Universal Taxonomic Services, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Accessed October 3, 2006.
- Global Biodiversity Information Facility. Accessed March 12, 2008. http://www.gbif.org Mediated distribution data from 9 providers.
- MBLWHOI Library: Universal Biological Index and Organizer. uBio.org accessed July 20, 2008.
- Parker III, T.A., D.F. Stotz, and J.W. Fitzpatrick, "Ecological and Distributional Databases for Neotropical Birds," in Neotropical Birds: Ecology and Conservation, by D.F. Stotz, T.A. Parker III, J.W. Fitzpatrick, and D.K. Moskovits (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1996). ISBN 0-226-64676-9.
Data Sources
Accessed through GBIF Data Portal March 12, 2008:
- Avian Knowledge Network: eBird
- Borror Laboratory of Bioacoustics
- Cornell University Museum of Vertebrates: Bird Collection
- Senckenberg: Collection Aves (spirit preserved)
- UNIBIO, IBUNAM: CNAV/Coleccion Nacional de Aves
Identifiers
- Biodiversity Heritage Library NamebankID: 3848478
- Catalogue of Life Accepted Name Code: ITS-178469
- Global Biodiversity Information Facility Taxonkey: 239931
- Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) Taxonomic Serial Number (TSN): 178468
- IUCN ID: 52139
- Zipcode Zoo Species Identifier: 406794
