House Martin - House Martin (English spelling)

A bird of the order Passeri in the class Aves, family Hirundinidae. One of three species in the genus Hirundinidae. Total length is about 14.5 cm. Its back is black with a white rump and short, shallowly incised tail feathers. Its underside is white, while its throat, upper chest and sides are dirty white. It is smaller than a swallow and its legs are covered in white feathers. It migrates to Japan as a summer bird and builds jar-shaped nests made of hardened mud in groups on rock faces in the mountains, cliff caves on the coast, bridges over rivers, or the eaves of houses. Many of them stay in various parts of Japan in the winter. Its breeding grounds are throughout the Eurasian continent, and it is distributed in Africa, India and Southeast Asia in the winter.

[Kan Sakane]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

鳥綱スズメ目ツバメ科の鳥。イワツバメ属3種中の1種。全長約14.5センチメートル。背面は黒色で腰が白く、尾羽は短く、切れ込みは浅い。下面は白色、のどと上胸およびわきは汚白(おはく)色を呈する。ツバメより小さく、足は白毛で覆われる。日本には夏鳥として渡来し、山地の岩壁、海岸の崖洞(がいどう)、河川の橋梁(きょうりょう)、あるいは人家の軒などに、泥を固めた壺(つぼ)状の巣を集団でつくる。冬季、日本各地に滞留するものも少なくない。ユーラシア大陸一帯に繁殖地があり、冬季はアフリカ、インド、東南アジアに分布する。

［坂根　干］

出典　小学館　日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)について　情報 | 凡例