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Bird

Tree Swallow

Tachycineta bicolor

Lives in Alabama all year and nests here. Found in all 67 counties, across 18 habitats.

Here
All year
Nesting
Nests here
Range
All 67 counties
Habitats
18

At a glance

Group
Birds
Here
All year
Nesting
Nests here
Range
All 67 counties
Habitats
18
Habitat models
Summer, Winter

Where it lives

The places its habitat model includes. It is not found everywhere a habitat occurs.

Habitats in Alabama 18

Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.

1 of 18

Coastal dunes and beaches

White Sand Bluffs, on Santa Rosa Island, Near Pensacola
SummerWinterUnconsolidated Shore (Beach/Dune); Florida Panhandle Beach Vegetation; East Gulf Coastal Plain Dune and Coastal GrasslandGeorge Catlin, White Sand Bluffs, on Santa Rosa Island, Near Pensacola (1834-35): high white dunes with scattered clumps of dune plants above the Gulf. Shown: Santa Rosa Island near Pensacola, Florida, a neighboring state.White Sand Bluffs, on Santa Rosa Island, Near Pensacola, George Catlin (1796-1872), 1834-1835. Public domain. Source record.

Coastal tidal marshes (salinity not stated)

On the San Sebastian River, Floridalabel QS:Len,"On the San Sebastian River, Florida"
WinterMartin Johnson Heade, On the San Sebastian River (c. 1883-90): a tidal river winding through flat marsh under storm clouds at sunset. Shown: San Sebastian River, St. Augustine, Florida, a neighboring state.On the San Sebastian River, Floridalabel QS:Len,"On the San Sebastian River, Florida", Martin Johnson Heade, c. 1883-1890. Public domain. Source record.

Freshwater marshes

The Great Florida Marsh
WinterSouthern Coastal Plain Nonriverine Basin Swamp - Okefenokee Nupea ModifierMartin Johnson Heade, The Great Florida Marsh (1886): open marsh and lily-dotted water beneath live oaks and cabbage palms. Regional view: the painting does not name the exact site. Shown: Florida (Heade, The Great Florida Marsh, 1886; North Carolina Museum of Art), a neighboring state.The Great Florida Marsh, Martin Johnson Heade, 1886. Public domain. Source record.

Pine savannas

Beautiful Savannah in the Pine Woods of Florida
WinterEast Gulf Coastal Plain Savanna and Wet PrairieGeorge Catlin, Beautiful Savannah in the Pine Woods of Florida (1834-35): an open grassy savanna with a shallow pond, ringed by tall pines, with palmettos and red wildflowers. Regional view: the painting does not name the exact site. Shown: Pine woods of Florida (George Catlin, 1834-35; Smithsonian American Art Museum), a neighboring state.Beautiful Savannah in the Pine Woods of Florida, George Catlin, 1834-1835. Public domain. Source record.

Ponds, lakes and their shores

Florida Sunrisetitle QS:P1476,en:"Florida Sunrise"label QS:Len,"Florida Sunrise"
SummerWinterOpen Water (Fresh)Martin Johnson Heade, Florida Sunrise: still water and a palm-fringed shore glowing at dawn. Regional view: the painting does not name the exact site. Shown: Florida (Heade, Florida Sunrise, c. 1890-1900), a neighboring state.Florida Sunrisetitle QS:P1476,en:"Florida Sunrise"label QS:Len,"Florida Sunrise", Martin Johnson Heade, c. 1890-1900. Public domain. Source record.

Sounds, bays and tidal flats

Fort George Island, Florida
SummerWinterOpen Water (Brackish/Salt)Thomas Moran, Fort George Island (1878): a tidal shore of wet sand and shallow water at the river mouth, with cabbage palms and a beached ship. Shown: Fort George Island, Florida (Thomas Moran, 1878; Smithsonian American Art Museum), a neighboring state.Fort George Island, Florida, Thomas Moran, 1878. Public domain. Source record.

Streams, rivers and their banks

Blue Spring, Florida
SummerCentral Interior and Appalachian Riparian Systems; South-Central Interior Small Stream and RiparianWinslow Homer, Blue Spring, Florida (1890): clear blue spring water under overhanging palms. Shown: Blue Spring, Florida (Winslow Homer, 1890; National Gallery of Art), a neighboring state.Blue Spring, Florida, Winslow Homer, 1890. Public domain. Source record.

Swamps

Florida, Sunset on the Ocklawaha
SummerWinterSouthern Coastal Plain Nonriverine Basin Swamp - Okefenokee Taxodium Modifier; Southern Coastal Plain Nonriverine Basin Swamp - Okefenokee Bay/Gum Modifier; East Gulf Coastal Plain Tidal Wooded Swamp; Central Interior and Appalachian Swamp Systems; Gulf and Atlantic Coastal Plain Swamp Systems; Southern Coastal Plain Nonriverine Basin Swamp; Southern Piedmont/Ridge and Valley Upland Depression SwampFlorida, Sunset on the Ocklawaha (1899): a dark swamp-lined river at sunset, with cypress and hardwoods crowding both banks. Shown: Ocklawaha River, Florida, a neighboring state.Florida, Sunset on the Ocklawaha, Detroit Photographic Co. (chromolithograph), 1899. Public domain. Source record.

Coastal Plain seepage bogs

Open, wet, seepage-fed bogs of the Coastal Plain and Sandhills, often with pitcher plants.

WinterSouthern Coastal Plain Herbaceous Seepage Bog

Disturbed and introduced wetlands

Wet ground taken over by weedy or introduced plants after disturbance, such as common reed, Chinese tallow or tamarisk stands; the upland counterpart is roadsides, fields and disturbed ground.

SummerWinter

Floodplain and bottomland forests

Forests on low ground beside rivers and streams that flood from time to time.

SummerWinterEast Gulf Coastal Plain Large River Floodplain Forest - Forest Modifier; South-Central Interior Large Floodplain - Forest Modifier; Southern Piedmont Large Floodplain Forest - Forest Modifier; Central Interior and Appalachian Floodplain Systems; Central Interior and Appalachian Riparian Systems; Southern Piedmont Small Floodplain and Riparian Forest; South-Central Interior Small Stream and Riparian; East Gulf Coastal Plain Small Stream and River Floodplain Forest; Southern Coastal Plain Blackwater River Floodplain Forest; South-Central Interior Large Floodplain

Hardwood and oak flatwoods

Flat, poorly drained uplands and terraces with oaks, sweetgum and sometimes loblolly pine, wet in winter and dry in summer, but neither a floodplain nor a swamp.

SummerSouth-Central Interior / Upper Coastal Plain Wet Flatwoods

Prairies and grasslands

Open, grass-dominated places kept open by fire, grazing or thin soil, from tallgrass prairie to Piedmont prairies.

SummerWinterEast Gulf Coastal Plain Black Belt Calcareous Prairie and Woodland - Herbaceous Modifier; East Gulf Coastal Plain Jackson Prairie and Woodland

Roadsides, fields and disturbed ground

Ground opened by people: roadsides, old fields, pastures, fencerows and lots.

SummerWinterDeveloped, Open Space; Pasture/Hay; Disturbed/Successional - Grass/Forb Regeneration; Utility Swath - Herbaceous; Ruderal Upland - Old Field

Salt and brackish marshes

Coastal marshes flooded by salty or brackish tides.

WinterMississippi Sound Salt and Brackish Tidal Marsh

Dry forests and woodlands

Forests and open woodlands on dry ridges and slopes, often oak or pine.

SummerOnly within 250 m of water.Allegheny-Cumberland Dry Oak Forest and Woodland - Hardwood

Glades, barrens and outcrops on limestone

Open, thin-soil openings and rock on limestone, dolomite or other lime-rich rock, including cedar glades.

SummerOnly within 250 m of water.Ridge and Valley Calcareous Valley Bottom Glade and Woodland; Central Interior Highlands Calcareous Glade and Barrens

Granite and other acidic rock outcrops

Bare or thin-soil rock on granite, gneiss, sandstone, quartzite and similar acidic rock, including granite flatrocks and domes.

SummerOnly within 250 m of water.Cumberland Sandstone Glade and Barrens
Other habitats in its models (98)

Land cover, or classes with no habitat page in Alabama. Those recorded in Alabama first, the rest by region.

In Alabama 1

  • Southern Piedmont Glade and Barrens Summer and winter.
Elsewhere in the South (49)
  • Appalachian Shale Barrens Summer, only within 250 m of water.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Central Fresh-Oligohaline Tidal Marsh Summer and winter.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Central Salt and Brackish Tidal Marsh Summer and winter.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Embayed Region Tidal Freshwater Marsh Summer and winter.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Embayed Region Tidal Salt and Brackish Marsh Summer and winter.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Indian River Lagoon Tidal Marsh Winter.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Large Natural Lakeshore Summer and winter.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Small Blackwater River Floodplain Forest Winter.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Small Brownwater River Floodplain Forest Winter.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Southern Dune and Maritime Grassland Winter.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Southern Tidal Wooded Swamp Winter.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Southern Wet Pine Savanna and Flatwoods Winter.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Xeric River Dune Winter.
  • Central and Upper Texas Coast Dune and Coastal Grassland Winter.
  • Central Florida Herbaceous Pondshore Winter.
  • Central Florida Herbaceous Seep Winter.
  • Central Interior Highlands Dry Acidic Glade and Barrens Summer, only within 250 m of water.
  • Crosstimbers Oak Forest and Woodland Summer, only within 250 m of water.
  • East-Central Texas Plains Floodplain Forest Winter.
  • East-Central Texas Plains Pine Forest and Woodland Winter.
  • East-Central Texas Plains Post Oak Savanna and Woodland Winter.
  • East-Central Texas Plains Riparian Forest Winter.
  • Florida Big Bend Fresh-Oligohaline Tidal Marsh Winter.
  • Florida Big Bend Salt-Brackish Tidal Marsh Winter.
  • Florida Dry Prairie Winter.
  • Floridian Highlands Freshwater Marsh Winter.
  • Lower Mississippi River Dune Woodland and Forest Winter.
  • Lower Mississippi River Flatwoods Winter.
  • Mississippi River Low Floodplain (Bottomland) Forest Winter.
  • Mississippi River Riparian Forest Summer and winter.
  • Nashville Basin Limestone Glade Summer, only within 250 m of water.
  • Red River Large Floodplain Forest Summer and winter.
  • South Florida Bayhead Swamp Winter.
  • South Florida Cypress Dome Winter.
  • South Florida Dwarf Cypress Savanna Winter.
  • South Florida Everglades Sawgrass Marsh Winter.
  • South Florida Wet Marl Prairie Winter.
  • Southwest Florida Dune and Coastal Grassland Winter.
  • Texas Saline Coastal Prairie Winter.
  • Texas-Louisiana Coastal Prairie Winter.
  • West Gulf Coastal Plain Catahoula Barrens Winter.
  • West Gulf Coastal Plain Large River Floodplain Forest Winter.
  • West Gulf Coastal Plain Near-Coast Large River Swamp Winter.
  • West Gulf Coastal Plain Nepheline Syenite Glade Winter.
  • West Gulf Coastal Plain Northern Calcareous Prairie Winter.
  • West Gulf Coastal Plain Seepage Swamp and Baygall Winter.
  • West Gulf Coastal Plain Southern Calcareous Prairie Winter.
  • West Gulf Coastal Plain Wet Longleaf Pine Savanna and Flatwoods Winter.
  • Western Great Plains Floodplain Winter.
Northeast (6)
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Northern Fresh and Oligohaline Tidal Marsh Summer and winter.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Northern Tidal Salt Marsh Summer and winter.
  • Central Appalachian Alkaline Glade and Woodland Summer, only within 250 m of water.
  • Central Appalachian Pine-Oak Rocky Woodland Summer, only within 250 m of water.
  • North-Central Interior Wet Flatwoods Summer.
  • Northern Atlantic Coastal Plain Basin Swamp and Wet Hardwood Forest Summer and winter.
Midwest (8)
  • Central Mixedgrass Prairie Summer, only within 250 m of water.
  • Central Tallgrass Prairie Summer, only within 250 m of water.
  • North-Central Interior Dry Oak Forest and Woodland Summer, only within 250 m of water.
  • North-Central Interior Dry-Mesic Oak Forest and Woodland Summer, only within 250 m of water.
  • North-Central Interior Oak Savanna Summer, only within 250 m of water.
  • North-Central Interior Sand and Gravel Tallgrass Prairie Summer, only within 250 m of water.
  • North-Central Oak Barrens Summer, only within 250 m of water.
  • Western Great Plains Wooded Draw and Ravine Summer and winter.
Land cover and other classes (34)
  • Allegheny-Cumberland Dry Oak Forest and Woodland - Pine Modifier Summer, only within 250 m of water.
  • Arkansas Valley Prairie and Woodland Summer, only within 250 m of water.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Clay-Based Carolina Bay Herbaceous Wetland Winter.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Depression Pondshore Summer and winter.
  • Atlantic Coastal Plain Streamhead Seepage Swamp - Pocosin - and Baygall Winter.
  • Central Appalachian Floodplain - Forest Modifier Summer.
  • Central Appalachian Riparian - Forest Modifier Summer.
  • Central Interior and Appalachian Shrub-Herbaceous Wetland Systems Summer.
  • Developed, Low Intensity Summer and winter.
  • East Gulf Coastal Plain Black Belt Calcareous Prairie and Woodland - Woodland Modifier Summer and winter.
  • East Gulf Coastal Plain Large River Floodplain Forest - Herbaceous Modifier Summer and winter.
  • East Gulf Coastal Plain Southern Depression Pondshore Summer and winter.
  • Eastern Great Plains Floodplain Systems Winter.
  • Eastern Great Plains Wet Meadow, Prairie, and Marsh Winter.
  • Eastern Highland Rim Prairie and Barrens - Dry Modifier Summer and winter.
  • Florida Longleaf Pine Sandhill - Open Understory Modifier Winter.
  • Harvested Forest - Grass/Forb Regeneration Summer and winter.
  • Introduced Upland Vegetation - Annual Grassland Summer and winter.
  • Introduced Upland Vegetation - Forbland Summer and winter.
  • Introduced Upland Vegetation - Perennial Grassland Summer and winter.
  • Mississippi River Floodplain and Riparian Forest Summer and winter.
  • Open Water (Aquaculture) Summer and winter.
  • Recently Burned Summer and winter.
  • Recently Burned Forest Summer and winter.
  • Recently Burned Grassland Summer and winter.
  • Recently Logged Areas Summer, only within 250 m of water.
  • South-Central Interior Large Floodplain - Herbaceous Modifier Summer.
  • Southern Coastal Plain Nonriverine Basin Swamp - Okefenokee Clethra Modifier Winter.
  • Southern Coastal Plain Nonriverine Basin Swamp - Okefenokee Pine Modifier Winter.
  • Texas-Louisiana Coastal Prairie Slough Winter.
  • Unconsolidated Shore Winter.
  • Unconsolidated Shore (Lake/River/Pond) Summer and winter.
  • Western Great Plains Depressional Wetland Systems Winter.
  • Western Great Plains Floodplain Systems Winter.

All habitats

Seasons in Alabama

  • Migratory: does not nest here, in 40 of 67 counties.
  • Winter: does not nest here, in 22 of 67 counties.
  • Summer: nests here, in 34 of 67 counties.

Food plants

Diet records by plant genus, from studies across North America. Not a record from this state. Plants matched by genus.

Native plants in these genera 12

Plant genera in its diet records (4)
  • Morella Fruit. 3 diet records. 4 native plants in Alabama
  • Cornus Fruit. 1 diet record. 4 native plants in Alabama
  • Juniperus Fruit. 1 diet record. 3 native plants in Alabama
  • Parthenocissus Fruit. 1 diet record. 1 native plant in Alabama

Avian Diet Database (Hurlbert Lab), CC0 1.0.

Also found in its main habitats

Its main habitats in Alabama, by how much of its habitat model each one is, with the birds most characteristic of each and the plants that grow wild there. Shared habitat, not food.

Tree Swallow uses many habitats in Alabama; these are its 3 most characteristic.

Floodplain and bottomland forests

Birds 105

Plants 418

All of floodplain and bottomland forests in Alabama

Roadsides, fields and disturbed ground

Birds 115

Plants 1485

All of roadsides, fields and disturbed ground in Alabama

Swamps

Birds 103

Plants 327

All of swamps in Alabama

USGS Gap Analysis Project habitat models.

Sources