Bank Swallow Similar Species Comparison
Similar Species
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Adult
Northern Rough-winged Swallows have a dingy throat and breast and lack the Bank Swallow's dark breast band.
© Luke Seitz | Macaulay LibraryCalifornia, March 25, 2013Similar Species
Tree Swallow
Juvenile
Juvenile Tree Swallows are brown above like Bank Swallows and have a dingy wash across the breast, but the band is not nearly as strong as it is on Bank Swallows.
© Andrew Aldrich | Macaulay LibraryMaine, August 04, 2017Similar Species
Violet-green Swallow
Adult male
Violet-green Swallows have white patches on the sides of their rump that Bank Swallows lack. Violet-greens are clean white underneath, lacking the Bank's dark breast band.
© Jason B Bidgood | Macaulay LibraryColorado, April 30, 2016Similar Species
Cliff Swallow
Adult
Cliff Swallows have a cream colored rump and collar, whereas Bank Swallows are entirely brown above.
© Dorian Anderson | Macaulay LibraryCalifornia, June 02, 2017Main Species
Bank Swallow
Small songbird with a small head and tiny bill. Adults are brown above with a brown breast band and a white swoosh on the neck.
© Darlene Friedman | Macaulay LibraryMichigan, July 31, 2020Adult
Nests in burrows excavated using its feet and bill, placed along banks and bluffs of rivers and streams, as well as gravel quarries and roadcuts.
© Timothy Barksdale | Macaulay LibraryMissouri, June 01, 1999In flight, note pale belly and darker wings with a brown band across the chest.
© Dana Siefer | Macaulay LibraryIowa, July 16, 2020Brown above and white below with a brown band across its chest.
© Adam Perrier | Macaulay LibraryYukon Territory, June 03, 2020Adults are brown above with a white throat that wraps up around the side of the neck. Note slightly forked tail.
© Darlene Friedman | Macaulay LibraryMichigan, July 31, 2020Habitat
Nests in burrows; forages for insects fairly low over fields, water, and other open areas.
© Oliver Burton | Macaulay LibraryBretagne, July 30, 2017Compare with Similar Species
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Species in This Family
Swallows(Order: Passeriformes, Family: Hirundinidae)
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