Cheramoeca leucosterna
Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%
The white-backed swallow (Cheramoeca leucosterna) is a member of the swallow family Hirundinidae and is endemic to Australia. It is the only species placed in the genus Cheramoeca. As with all swallows, it is characterised by adaptation to aerial feeding. It can be identified by its white back, surrounded by black wings and tail. It has a wide distribution, from the southern part of the Australian continent, up to the Tropic of Capricorn. The white-backed swallow prefers grasslands and will create a burrow nest.
The white-backed swallow was formally described in 1841 by the English ornithologist John Gould based on a specimen collected on the banks of the Namoi River in New South Wales, Australia. Gould coined the binomial name Hirundo leucosternus. The white-backed swallow is now the only species placed in the genus Cheramoeca that was introduced in 1851 by the German ornithologist Jean Cabanis. The genus name combines the Ancient Greek khēramos meaning "hole", "cleft" or "hollow" with oikeō meaning "to inhabit". The specific epithet is from the Ancient Greek leukosternos meaning "white-chested" (from leukos "white" and sternon meaning "breast"). Gould's spelling of... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Flinders Ranges National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 2 | Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 3 | Hattah-Kulkyne National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a White-backed Swallow sighting in Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park on a given day, based on 25 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 60th most-seen of the 84 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.
March, May, August–September and November
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a White-backed Swallow in Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park on a given day, against under 5% in April, June–July, October and December–February, the lowest months.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most White-backed 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.
2nd of 3
Of the 3 parks where we can rate White-backed Swallow sightings, Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park ranks 2nd at under 5%. The best odds are in Flinders Ranges National Park (Australia, about 10%).
Same family: Hirundinidae
The closest relatives of the White-backed Swallow that you can see in Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park (family Hirundinidae, Swallows and Martins) are Fairy Martin (about 40%) and Tree Martin (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the White-backed Swallow is recorded against all the birds logged in Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park (25 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.
