“The Social Life of Cliff Swallows” is the subject of the Birds of the World discovery seminar series, which you can view live online (photo by Matt Davis). Cliff Swallows are one of the most social landbirds in North America (photo by Mitch Walters).

Presented as part of the online Birds of the World discovery seminar series, “The Social Life of Cliff Swallows” will be described by Charles Brown tomorrow, October 16th at 9am CDT. Brown’s study of the social behaviors of Cliff Swallows stands as one of the longest-running research projects on any species of birds in North America. Dr. Brown’s work to understand the social behavior of colony nesting Cliff Swallows provides many interesting insights into social feeding and illustrates the advantages and disadvantages of group living, along with some surprising egg-laying behaviors.

Among a variety of interesting colonial behaviors observed, Brown’s study first documented that a widespread percentage of female Cliff Swallows laid eggs in neighboring pairs’ nests, and some even physically transferred eggs to neighboring nests, enabling some birds to exploit the reproductive efforts of other colony nesting members. This interesting presentation will give an overview of Dr. Brown’s research, especially focusing on how some of the benefits and costs of colonial nesting have changed over time. The process of the evolution of group-living will also be discussed, along with an overview of this work during 45 years of study.

It's Free to register for this 90-minute online presentation provided by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology at Webinar Registration - Zoom. And check in at Birds of the World anytime to find out about the wealth of information available about every species of birds worldwide at Birds of the World - Cornell Lab of Ornithology