![]() Subadult females look similar to adult females minus the steel blue sheen and browner on the back. Both male and female purple martins exhibit delayed plumage maturation, meaning it takes them two years before they acquire full adult plumage. Adult females are dark on top with some steel blue sheen, and lighter underparts. Adult males are entirely black with glossy steel blue sheen, the only swallow in North America with such coloration. With an average length of 20 cm (7.9 in) and a wingspan up to 38 cm (15 in), the purple martin is the largest amongst the 90 some species in the family Hirundinidae. arboricola Behle, 1968 – west USA and north Mexico. ![]() hesperia Brewster, 1889 – southwest USA and northwest Mexico. Winters through South America east of the Andes subis (Linnaeus, 1758) – nominate form, south Canada, east USA and east Mexico. It may have been applied to this species because of its aggression toward birds of prey when it is nesting. The specific epithet subis is Latin for a bird mentioned by the Roman author Nigidius Figulus that could break eagle's eggs. Progne or Procne ( Πρόκνη), the daughter of King Pandion of Athens and wife of King Tereus of Thrace was transformed into a swallow. The genus name Progne is from Greek mythology. The purple martin is now placed in the genus Progne that was introduced in 1826 by the German zoologist Friedrich Boie. Linnaeus included a brief description, coined the binomial name Hirundo subis and cited Edwards' work. When in 1758 the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus updated his Systema Naturae for the tenth edition, he placed the purple martin with swallows and swifts in the genus Hirundo. ![]() Edwards based his hand-coloured etching on a preserved specimen that had been brought to London from the Hudson Bay area of Canada by James Isham. He used the English name "The Great American Martin". In 1750 the English naturalist George Edwards included an illustration and a description of the purple martin in the third volume of his A Natural History of Uncommon Birds. When approaching their nesting site, they will dive from the sky at great speeds with their wings tucked, just like the peregrine falcon does when hunting smaller birds. They are known for their speed, agility, and their characteristic mix of rapid flapping and gliding flight pattern. Most make a brief stopover in the Yucatán Peninsula or Cuba during pre-breeding migration to North America and during post-breeding migration before reaching their overwintering site in South America. Subspecies breed in Baja California, Arizona, and New Mexico. In some light they may even appear green in color.īeing migratory, their breeding range extends from central Alberta down through the eastern United States. The dark blackish-blue feathers have an iridescent sheen caused by the refraction of incident light giving them a bright blue to navy blue or deep purple appearance. Despite its name, the purple martin is not truly purple. ![]() It is the largest swallow in North America. ![]() The purple martin ( Progne subis) is a passerine bird in the swallow family Hirundinidae. Orange: breeding yellow: migration blue: nonbreeding ![]()
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