Journal of Threatened Taxa | www.threatenedtaxa.org | 26 December 2024 | 16(12): 26325–26327

ISSN 0974-7907 (Online) | ISSN 0974-7893 (Print)

https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.9381.16.12.26325-26327

#9381 | Received 24 August 2024 | Final received 21 November 2024 | Finally accepted 25 November 2024

First record of Eurasian Crag Martin Ptyonoprogne rupestris (Scopoli, 1769) (Aves: Passeriformes: Hirundinidae) from Tamil Nadu, India

S. Naveenkumar

#439, 6^th Street, KK Pudur, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu 641038, India.

naturenks@gmail.com

Editor: H. Byju, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India. Date of publication: 26 December 2024 (online & print)

Citation: Naveenkumar, S. (2024). First record of Eurasian Crag Martin Ptyonoprogne rupestris (Scopoli, 1769) (Aves: Passeriformes: Hirundinidae) from Tamil Nadu, India. Journal of Threatened Taxa 16(12): 26325–26327. https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.9381.16.12.26325-26327

Copyright: © Naveenkumar 2024. Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. JoTT allows unrestricted use, reproduction, and distribution of this article in any medium by providing adequate credit to the author(s) and the source of publication.

Funding: None.

Competing interests: The author declares no competing interests.

Eurasian Crag Martin Ptyonoprogne rupestris is a small-sized aerial insectivorous bird from the family Hirundinidae, commonly grouped under swallows and martins. Eurasian Crag Martin breeds in India and Pakistan Himalayan region; winters mainly in Western Ghats of Karnataka, Maharashtra, Goa, and Gujarat states (Grimmett et. al. 2011). Eurasian Crag Martin has brown-grey crown and upper parts, dark brown wings and tail, tail square, white spots on inner webs of feathers (except inner and outermost pairs, occasionally spots also on outer pair), chin and throat pale with dark speckling, pale buff breast grading into brown-grey belly and brown undertail-coverts, underwing-coverts blackish (Turner 2020). Forages close to cliff faces, over the gorges, woodland and villages; outside breeding season they tend to forage over farmland, meadows, rocky coasts, swamps, and lakes (Turner 2020). Eurasian Crag Martin differs from widely resident Dusky Crag Martin Ptyonoprogne concolor by larger size, paler brown upperparts and underparts with throat and breast noticeably paler than belly and vent, further underwing appears strong two-toned compared with that of Dusky Crag Martin. Its habitat includes rocky cliffs and gorges (Grimmett et al. 2011), mountains, crags, and coastal cliffs; and around human habitations (Turner 2020).

The Eurasian Crag Martin was recorded from Tamil Nadu State with photographic evidence (Image 1–4). On 18 August 2024 at 0810 hr while birding at Sithakiri Malai (10.732 ⁰N, 77.694 ⁰E), Kuppanavalasu of Dindigul District of Tamil Nadu, two individuals were recorded actively foraging near cliff faces and occasionally perching on a crag. It is a rocky hill at 350 m surrounded by grasslands and agricultural lands.

The Eurasian Crag Martin is assessed as ‘Least Concern’ on the IUCN Red List (BirdLife International 2024) and listed under Schedule-II of Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972. It is listed as species with a high priority with long-term (the proportional change in frequency of reporting in 2022 when compared with the frequency before the year 2000) trend with a rapid decline (79%) and a current annual (the average annual change in frequency of reporting during the year 2015–2022) trend with the decline (5.51%) in the population (SoIB 2023) with limitations of the study (Maitreyi 2024), even though it’s stable globally (BirdLife International 2024).

This is the first sighting of Eurasian Crag Martin in Tamil Nadu. Birders overlook these birds due to their small size, speed, and altitude at which they fly (Shendokar & Kukade 2016). Sighting reports of these species are important to predict their migration routes, and range extension and to protect them.

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References

BirdLife International (2024). Ptyonoprogne rupestris. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2024: e.T22712216A264590667. Accessed on 18 December 2024.

Grimmett , R., C. Inskipp & T. Inskipp (2011). Helm Field Guides Birds of the Indian Subcontinent. Oxford University Press, New Delhi, 528 pp.

Maitreyi, H. (2024). State of India’s Birds Report — a brief review. Zoo’s Print 39(1): 119–124.

Shendokar, S. & R. Kukade (2016). Sighting record of Sand Martin Riparia riparia, Eurasian Crag Martin Hirundo rupestris and Northern House Martin Delichon urbica from Vidarbha region of Maharashtra, India. Ela Journal of Forestry and Wildlife 5(3): 239–241.

SoIB 2023. State of India’s Birds factsheet: Eurasian Crag Martin Ptyonoprogne rupestris (India) https://stateofindiasbirds.in/species/eurcrm1/. (Accessed on 23^rd August 2024).

Turner, A. (2020). Eurasian Crag-Martin (Ptyonoprogne rupestris), version 1.0. In: del Hoyo, J., A. Elliott, J. Sargatal, D.A. Christie & E. de Juana (eds.) Birds of the World. Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.eurcrm1.01