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  1. Species
  2. ›
  3. Artamidae
  4. ›
  5. Artamus
  6. ›
  7. Little Woodswallow
Little Woodswallow
Photo · (c) Tony Eales, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA)

BirdUp · Species

Little Woodswallow

Artamus minorVieillot, 1817

Updated 21 March 2026

Origin: Native
Order
PASSERIFORMES
Family
Artamidae
Genus
Artamus

At a glance

The Little Woodswallow is a small bird, about 13–15 cm long, native to Australia. It can be seen year-round.

Size
13–15 cm
Origin
Native
Best seen
Year-round
Commonness
Very common
  • Identification
  • Where
  • When
  • Behaviour
  • Gallery

01 · Identification

How to tell it apart

What does a Little Woodswallow look like?

The Little Woodswallow is a small bird, about 13–15 cm long and weighing 13–22 g.

The little woodswallow, is a bird patchily distributed over much of mainland Australia, avoiding only the driest deserts and the area within about 300 kilometres of the southern coastline, and showing a preference for rugged terrain around inland ranges.

Description · wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0

Field specs

Length
13–15 cm
Weight
13.1–21.5 g

Measurements · avonet · CC BY 4.0

03 · When

When to look

When can you see a Little Woodswallow?

The Little Woodswallow is present across its Australian range year-round, so it can be seen in any month.

  1. Jan
  2. Feb
  3. Mar
  4. Apr
  5. May
  6. Jun
  7. Jul
  8. Aug
  9. Sep
  10. Oct
  11. Nov
  12. Dec

05 · Behaviour

Habits and haunts

What does a Little Woodswallow eat?

The Little Woodswallow feeds on nectar/pollen and terrestrial invertebrates, usually foraging in pairs or flocks or alone.

06 · Gallery

Plumage up close

6 photos

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02 · Where

Where to find it

Where does the Little Woodswallow live in Australia?

The Little Woodswallow is native to Australia, recorded across 63 of Australia’s bioregions.

BreedingAustralia (except south, Tasmania)

Distribution from BirdUp Australia community data

Legend

  • Resident
  • Breeding
  • Vagrant

7 regions recorded