Sand martin (Sand martin)

Japanese: ショウドウツバメ(小洞燕) - ショウドウツバメ（英語表記）sand martin

A passerine bird of the swallow family (illustration). It is so named because it digs horizontal holes into sandy, muddy cliffs to make its nest. It breeds in temperate to subarctic zones in both Eurasia and North America, and winters in the tropical to southern hemispheres of each continent. It is a summer bird that arrives in Japan around early May and leaves between mid-August and mid-September, breeding in Hokkaido. It is a migratory bird that only passes through Honshu and south in spring and autumn, but large and small flocks can be seen around rivers, coasts, lakes and marshes in various places from September to October. A small number of them spend the winter together with swallows in Lake Hamana and Lake Kasumigaura, and in Lake Hamana they also use the interiors of houses as a roost.

Source: Heibonsha World Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition Information

Japanese:

スズメ目ツバメ科の鳥（イラスト）。砂泥質の崖に横穴を掘って巣とするのでこの名がある。ユーラシア，北アメリカ両大陸の温帯から亜寒帯で繁殖し，それぞれの大陸の熱帯から南半球にかけて越冬する。日本では5月上旬ころ渡来，8月中旬～9月中旬に渡去する夏鳥で，北海道で繁殖する。本州以南では春秋に通過するだけの旅鳥だが，9～10月ころ各地の河川，海岸，湖沼などで大小の群れを見る。浜名湖や霞ヶ浦ではツバメとともに少数が越冬し，浜名湖ではねぐらに人家の室内も利用している。

出典　株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典第２版について　情報

<<: Holy Path Gate - Shoudoumon

>>: Small bronze bell