Riparia Riparia - Hand-colored Sand Martin Lithograph by M. von Wright, 1927

The sand martin, Riparia riparia, a hand-colored lithograph from Svenska fåglar (Swedish Birds), drawn by Magnus von Wright and printed by A. Bortzells Tryckeri, dated 1927. The plate is lettered "Riparia riparia Lin." with the Swedish name "Backsvala" beneath, and signed "M. v. Wright del." in the lower right of the image.

The small bird is shown in profile, perched on a patch of grass and earth against the bare ground of the sheet. It has the brown upper parts, white throat and underside, and the faint dark band across the breast by which the species is known. The coloring is soft and naturalistic, and the generous margins leave the bird alone on the page.

The sand martin nests in colonies in sandy banks, which is the source of its Latin and Swedish names, and it winters in the tropics. In North America the same species is called the bank swallow.