Wanderer: Nov 16, 2012 and Nov 8-13, 2024 (1-6 birds) at Schoodic Point .
Miscellany: In the last 25 years, and for reasons that are unclear other than a close association with strong late season southwesterly airflows, pale rumped Cave Swallows from Texas, New Mexico and/or Mexico have been found Nov-Dec in the Northeast, sometimes in the hundreds. Our first one was found dead at the Schoodic Environmental Research Center, where the specimen is on display, within 10 days of three other Maine records. The 2024 record(s) was also part of a significant coastal/near coastal invasion.
Cave Swallows also nest in Florida and some islands in the western Caribbean. They're smaller and darker than the Southwestern birds and have been recorded in New England and the Maritimes in spring, but not yet here.
This species is no longer reviewed by the Maine Bird Records Committee.
Last Updated: November 14th, 2024