Common. Sedentary near gorges of ranges, nomadic on grassy plains.
Habitat
Mainly woodlands and shrublands on and surrounding rocky outcrops, hills, ranges and breakaways, often where rockholes and waterholes are present.
Little Woodswallow (Artamus minor) [XC107832]
by Matthias Feuersenger from The Loop, Kalbarri National Park, Kalbarri, Australia (call)
Little Woodswallow (Artamus minor) [XC233762]
by nick talbot from The Pilliga, New South Wales, Australia (song)
Breeding Season (Guide)
August - January or after rain.
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Nest
Open, cup-shaped, composed of small twigs and plant stems and lined with rootlets, placed in the end of a hollow limb, in a cavity in a trunk of a tree or in clefts of cliffs.
Eggs (Guide)
3; cream with grey and brown blotches and spots at the larger end; oval; about 20 x 14 mm. Incubation: about 16 days; by both sexes.
Young
Altricial, nidicolous. Fledge in about 16 - 20 days. Possibly fed by both parents.
Subspecies
The following 2 subspecies are recognised:
minor Vieillot, 1817 - Western Australia (Pilbara and Murchison regions) east to ranges of southern northern Territory and north-western South Australia.
derbyi Mathews, 1912 - Northern and eastern Australia (south, in east, to northern New South Wales and eastern South Australia).
Similar Species
Dusky Woodswallow (Artamus cyanopterus) which is somewhat lighter and larger and has a prominent white leading edge to the upper wing.
References
See References.
The Field Guide to the Birds of Australia Pizzey, G., and Knight, E., 1997, Angus & Robertson, Sydney ISBN 0 207 19691 5
Field Guide to Australian Birds Morecombe, M., 2000, Steve Parish Publishing Pty Ltd. ISBN 1 876282 10 X
Field Guide to the Birds of Australia Simpson, K., and Day, N., 1999, 6th Edition, Viking ISBN 0 670 87918 5
Reader's Digest Complete Book of Australian Birds 1988, 2nd Edition, Reader's Digest ISBN 0 949819 99 9
What Bird is That? 1984, Revised Edition, Angus & Robertson, Sydney ISBN 0 207 14846 5
Handbook of Australian, New Zealand & Antarctic Birds 1990 - , Oxford University Press, Melbourne ISBN 0 19 553244 9
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BirdLife International Species Factsheet