Petrochelidon spilodera
Silhouette: Andy Wilson · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
The South African cliff swallow (Petrochelidon spilodera), also known as the South African swallow, is a species of bird in the family Hirundinidae native southern Africa. It winters to the lower Congo Basin. Nests are commonly built from mud under artificial structures such as huts and bridges. It is well known for its supposed ability to carry coconuts, although this claim has little to no credibility outside of the Monty Python fictional universe.
BirdLife International 2004. Hirundo spilodera. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Downloaded on 26 July 2007. South African Cliff Swallow - Species text in The Atlas of Southern African Birds. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Etosha National Park | 🇳🇦 Namibia |
More parks will be added in future updates.
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pretoria | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 2 | Johannesburg | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a South African Swallow sighting in Etosha National Park on a given day, based on 38 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 176th most-seen of the 260 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 20%, if each day is a fresh chance.
August and October
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a South African Swallow in Etosha National Park on a given day, against under 5% in September and November–July, the lowest months. Those are among Etosha National Park's driest months, with almost no rain against 75 mm in January.
Between 6 and 9 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most South African Swallow sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Only Etosha National Park, in our data
Etosha National Park is the only park on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate South African Swallow sightings: under 5% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
Same family: Hirundinidae
The closest relatives of the South African Swallow that you can see in Etosha National Park (family Hirundinidae, Swallows and Martins) are Rock Martin (about 30%), Rufous-chested Swallow (about 20%) and Barn Swallow (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the South African Swallow is recorded against all the birds logged in Etosha National Park (38 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
