Indian Swiftlet
Encyclopedia
The Indian Swiftlet, or Indian Edible-nest Swiftlet, Aerodramus unicolor, is a small swift
. It is a common resident colonial
breeder in the hills of Sri Lanka
and south west India
.
The half-cup nest is built on a vertical surface, often in a cave. The male swift uses thick saliva to construct the white, shiny nest into which two eggs are laid.
The relatively tasteless nests are harvested, and mixed with chicken, spices, and other flavors as bird's nest soup
, a supposed aphrodisiac.
This 12 cm long species is mainly dark brown above and paler brown below. It has swept-back wings that resemble a crescent or a boomerang
. The body is slender, and the tail is short and only slightly indented.
Both sexes and young birds are similar. Indian Swiftlet has very short legs which it uses only for clinging to vertical surfaces, since swifts never settle voluntarily on the ground.
These swifts spend most of their lives in the air, living on the insects they catch in their bills, and they drink on the wing.
Swift
The swifts are a family, Apodidae, of highly aerial birds. They are superficially similar to swallows, but are actually not closely related to passerine species at all; swifts are in the separate order Apodiformes, which they share with hummingbirds...
. It is a common resident colonial
Bird colony
A bird colony is a large congregation of individuals of one or more species of bird that nest or roost in close proximity at a particular location. Many kinds of birds are known to congregate in groups of varying size; a congregation of nesting birds is called a breeding colony...
breeder in the hills of Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
and south west India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
.
The half-cup nest is built on a vertical surface, often in a cave. The male swift uses thick saliva to construct the white, shiny nest into which two eggs are laid.
The relatively tasteless nests are harvested, and mixed with chicken, spices, and other flavors as bird's nest soup
Bird's nest soup
Bird's nest soup is a delicacy in Chinese cuisine. A few species of swift, the cave swifts, are renowned for building the saliva nests used to produce the unique texture of this soup....
, a supposed aphrodisiac.
This 12 cm long species is mainly dark brown above and paler brown below. It has swept-back wings that resemble a crescent or a boomerang
Boomerang
A boomerang is a flying tool with a curved shape used as a weapon or for sport.-Description:A boomerang is usually thought of as a wooden device, although historically boomerang-like devices have also been made from bones. Modern boomerangs used for sport are often made from carbon fibre-reinforced...
. The body is slender, and the tail is short and only slightly indented.
Both sexes and young birds are similar. Indian Swiftlet has very short legs which it uses only for clinging to vertical surfaces, since swifts never settle voluntarily on the ground.
These swifts spend most of their lives in the air, living on the insects they catch in their bills, and they drink on the wing.