Bird Guide

Lesser Striped Swallow vs Mosque Swallow

Lesser Striped Swallow (Cecropis abyssinica)

Lesser Striped Swallow

Cecropis abyssinica

Tiny13 gGrassland

The lesser striped swallow is 15–10 cm long. It has dark blue upperparts with a red rump and a rufous-chestnut crown, nape and sides of the head. The underparts are white with dark streaking, and the upper wings and underwing flight feathers are blackish-brown. The underwing coverts are tawny. The blackish tail has very long outer feathers; these are slightly longer in the male than the female. Juveniles are duller and browner, with less contrast and shorter outer tail feathers. There are five or six subspecies differing in the extent of the underpart streaking.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Sonogram of the Lesser Striped Swallow
Recorded by Rion Lerm · Alarm call · Kruger Park (near Kruger National Park), Mopani, Limpopo, South Africa · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo: B Pulman005 · CC BY 4.0
Mosque Swallow (Cecropis senegalensis)

Mosque Swallow

Cecropis senegalensis

Small45 gGrassland

The mosque swallow is the largest and heaviest species of African swallow, resembling a big red-rumped swallow Cecropis daurica. The crown, upperparts, and tail are glossy dark blue, and the lores and sides of the head are whitish forming a collar. The rump is dark rufous, while the throat and upper breast are pale rufous, shading to dark rufous on the remainder of the underparts. Very pale underwing coverts contrast with the dark flight feathers. Females are similar to males but have shorter tail streamers. Juveniles are browner. Mosque swallows are 21–23 cm (8.3–9.1 in) in length.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: danielskatz · CC BY 4.0

Where you might meet both

And 2 more countries.

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Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Lesser Striped Swallow and Mosque Swallow.