Editing Welcome swallow (section)

==Behaviour==
===Breeding===
[[File:Hirundo neoxena - Gould's Lagoon.jpg|thumb|Copulating welcome swallows]]
Once the welcome swallow reaches maturity it has a long breeding period. They have a monogamous social structure and a breeding period that lasts from August until March.<ref name="nzbirdsonline" /> The nest is an open cup of mud and grass, made by both sexes, and is attached to a structure, such as a vertical rock wall or building. It is lined with feathers and fur, and three to five [[Bird egg|eggs]] are laid. Two broods are often raised in a season. The nest size ranges from 5 centimetres to 13.5 centimetres.<ref name="nzbirdsonline" /> One particular study showed that the nests that were the highest tended to have a higher fledgling success rate possibly due to the inability of mammals to access the nests.<ref name="Evans">{{cite journal | last1=Evans | first1= K. |last2=Tyler | first2= C.|last3=Blackburn | first3=T.|last4=Duncan |first4= R.| year=2002| title=Changes in the breeding biology of the Welcome Swallow (''Hirundo tahitica'') in New Zealand since colonisation| journal=Emu |volume=103 | issue= 3 |pages=215–220|doi=10.1071/MU02052| s2cid= 86012078 }}</ref> Nesting sites can be a variety of areas and have been documented to be from urban and suburban areas to rural areas. Buildings, moveable boats and ferries, hollowed-out trees, caves and cliffs, mine tunnels and shafts, as well as underground water tanks have all been observed areas of nesting swallows.<ref name="Marchant & Fullgar" /> They build the cup-shape nests connecting to vertical rock walls or buildings to avoid sunlight.<ref name="EOL" /> Nests on average take 8–23 days to build, and are often re-used for consecutive years of breeding. Welcome swallows often go back to their old nests for the next year to breed.<ref name="Higgins" /> They always work as a flock. When breeding, they usually work in pairs but often small loose groups to protect their nest and territory, especially against predatory birds.<ref name="nzbirdsonline" /> The number of successful broods can vary year to year; however, the maximum number of broods recorded is three. Each brood or clutch can range from two to seven eggs with an average of four.<ref name="nzbirdsonline" /> However, during the beginning of a breeding season, clutch sizes have been known to be bigger, whereas towards the end of the breeding season clutch sizes may be smaller.<ref name="Tarburton">{{cite journal | last=Tarburton | first=M. | year=1993 | title=A comparison of the breeding biology of the welcome swallow in Australia and recently colonised New Zealand | journal=Emu |volume=93 | issue=1 |pages=34–43 |doi=10.1071/MU9930034| bibcode=1993EmuAO..93...34T }}</ref> Eggs are generally laid in twenty-four- to forty-eight-hour intervals; however, one nest can have multiple clutches because the parent pair may abandon a nest if the clutch size is too small and then another pair will lay their eggs within that same nest.<ref name="Marchant & Fullgar" /> Eggs are generally 18&nbsp;mm in length and 13mm in width with a pink colour and brown speckles.<ref name="nzbirdsonline" /> Male welcome swallows do not participate in the incubation of the eggs. Rather they forage while the female incubates, and when the female forages they either watch the nest for a short period or accompany the female in foraging.<ref name="Tarburton" />[[File:Swallow chicks444.jpg|thumb|right|Chicks the day after fledging]]The female alone [[avian incubation|incubates]] the eggs, which hatch after two to three weeks. The young are fed by both parents, and leave the nest after a further two to three weeks. Males have been known to remove fecal sacs after coaxing the cloaca of the young to dispose of them as well.<ref name="Tarburton"/> The fledglings stay in the nest from 18 to 23 days and become completely independent around 35 days. However, they don't start breeding until 8 months to 14 months of age.<ref name=nzbirdsonline/> Although welcome swallows are monogamous, more than just the breeding pair may take care of the young. Also, many swallows may live within the nest like during non-breeding periods where colonies will roost together in large numbers.<ref name=nzbirdsonline/> Welcome swallows are good indicators of temperature, as the temperature drops lower, the less likely a swallow will be observed in the South. When swallows are around, the temperature usually does not drop below -2/-3 degree Celsius.<ref name=nzbirdsonline/> Migration may occur during non-breeding seasons for larger more reliable food sources. These distances may be quite large as well during winter when food is not readily available.<ref name=nzbirdsonline/> Individuals in this species have been known to live up to 6 years creating up to three broods a year during the breeding season.<ref name=nzbirdsonline/>

===Food and feeding===
These birds are extremely agile fliers, which feed on [[insect]]s while in flight. They often fly fast and low to the ground on open fields in large circles or figure eight patterns. They will often swoop around animals or people in the open. Males and females tend to forage together during breeding season even with fledglings within the nest.<ref name="Tarburton"/> Welcome swallows do show a habit of drinking water while flying, they do this by scooping water within their bills from lake and pond surfaces.<ref name=nzbirdsonline/> This is because welcome swallows need to drink water frequently, which allows them to catch insects in the water as well.<ref name=nzbirdsonline/> Welcome swallows can also cooperate with other birds or companions to drive the insects together.<ref name=EOL/> They can remember the insects’ activity routines to make foraging more efficient.

It has been found welcome swallows have slow growing wings that are not affected by food intake unless they are starving. This suggests that the welcome swallow prioritizes wing growth even when fasting for up to six hours at a time.<ref name="Ashton">{{cite journal |last1=Ashton |first1=J |last2=Armstrong |first2=D |year=2002 |title=Facultative prioritization of wing growth in the Welcome Swallow ''Hirundo neoxena'' |journal=Ibis |volume=144 |issue=3 |pages=470–477 |doi=10.1046/j.1474-919X.2002.00077.x}}</ref> It is also believed that the swallow accumulates fat in order to survive time periods when food is scarce or conditions are bad. This method allows rapid growth when conditions are good and stable growth when conditions are bad.<ref name="Ashton" />