Violet-Green Swallow
Tachycineta thalassina
About This Species
Look for a small, fast-flying aerialist with an iridescent green back, violet rump patch, and a white face that wraps up above the eye. It nests in tree cavities, cliff crevices, and nest boxes across western mountains and coasts, often foraging in loose flocks over open ground, canyons, or water at dawn and dusk. Spring through summer, during the breeding season, is the best window, especially around cliff faces and forest edges where it hawks insects on the wing.
Ethical Viewing Guidelines
- Give nest cavities and nest boxes a wide berth, especially during incubation, and watch foraging flocks from a distance with binoculars rather than approaching.
- Wild birds and their active nests carry legal protection across most of this species' range, including the Migratory Bird Treaty Act in the United States and equivalent migratory bird laws in Canada, so avoid handling birds, eggs, or nests.
- If a bird changes its behaviour or breaks off feeding when you're near, that's the sign to back away.
LCAvesPasseriformesHirundinidae
Seasonal Activity
1,719,609 sightings · 2000–2026
Citizen science records via GBIF
All monthsThis month
Classification
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Hirundinidae
Photo
(c) Blake Matheson, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
CC-BY-NC-4.0
Occurrence data from GBIF.