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The Brown-throated Martin, Riparia paludicola, is small (12 cm) and a partially migratory species, with some populations making seasonal movements. It has a wide range in southern Africa.

This martin is colonial in its nesting habits, with many pairs breeding close together. The nests are at the end of tunnels of 30 to 60 cm in length, bored in sandbanks.

If forages aerially closely over vegetation, over water and often over arid land far from water. Infrequently it picks up food from the ground. Roosts communally at night perched in reed stands. They are often seen in the company of other swallows, swifts and martins.


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