Cecropis hyperythra
Silhouette: Andy Wilson · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
The Sri Lanka swallow (Cecropis hyperythra) is a resident breeder endemic to Sri Lanka. It is closely related to the red-rumped swallow, and was formerly considered a subspecies. Quite a large swallow with a deeply forked tail. It has a deep rufous underside and an unmarked navy-blue rump, a unique feature of this species. Its rufous underside can be used to tell it apart from the red-rumped swallow. It is a passerine, which means it has three toes pointing forward and one pointing backward, allowing it to perch.
It is found in a variety of open country habitats in both the lowlands and foothills in Sri Lanka, including farm fields and lightly wooded areas. It usually lives in pairs or small groups. Rasmussen, P.C., and J.C. Anderton. 2005. Birds of South Asia. The Ripley guide. Volume 2: attributes and status. Smithsonian Institution and Lynx Edicions, Washington D.C. and Barcelona Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yala National Park | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | |
| 2 | Udawalawe National Park | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | |
| 3 | Sinharaja Forest Reserve | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | |
| 4 | Minneriya National Park | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | |
| 5 | Wilpattu National Park | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | |
| 6 | Horton Plains National Park | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Colombo [Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte] | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Sri Lanka Swallow sighting in Horton Plains National Park on a given day, based on 20 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 66th most-seen of the 102 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.
February–March, May–July and October
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Sri Lanka Swallow in Horton Plains National Park on a given day, against under 5% in April, August–September and November–January, the lowest months.
Between 3 and 6 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Sri Lanka Swallow sightings with a recorded time, and about 6 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is most active around dawn and dusk.
6th of 6
Of the 6 parks where we can rate Sri Lanka Swallow sightings, Horton Plains National Park ranks 6th at under 5%. The best odds are in Yala National Park (Sri Lanka, about 40%), Udawalawe National Park (Sri Lanka, about 40%) and Sinharaja Forest Reserve (Sri Lanka, about 40%). All parks ranked.
Same family: Hirundinidae
The closest relatives of the Sri Lanka Swallow that you can see in Horton Plains National Park (family Hirundinidae, Swallows and Martins) are Hill Swallow (about 80%) and Barn Swallow (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Sri Lanka Swallow is recorded against all the birds logged in Horton Plains National Park (20 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.
