Species introCountry intro
Mossy-Nest Swiftlet
The third commonest echolocating swiftlet in Borneo. They nest in rock crevices and dark caves, navigating in darkness through their reflected calls. This echolocation is not sufficient to hunt insects so they come out for feeding during the day. The small mossy nest these make is -fortunately for them- of no commercial value (as opposed to other swiftlet species in the same area, which make edible nests highly appreciated in Asian kitchen). Usually lay two eggs in a clutch.
Habitat: This colony is in a crevice of a large rocky mountain in the riverside of Kinabatangan, near Sukau. Sabah.
The mossy-nest swiftlet is a species of swift in the Apodidae family. Some taxonomists consider it to be a subspecies of the uniform swiftlet. It is found in northern Borneo, the Natuna and the Derawan Islands, islands off western Sumatra and Java. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests.
comments (4)
https://macaulaylibrary.org/asset/66400181
I invite you to look at these many photos of Mossy-nest Swiftlets to see they lack that glossy blue plumage...
https://search.macaulaylibrary.org/catalog?taxonCode=monswi2&mediaType=photo&sort=rating_rank_desc&view=grid
This is a very common misidentification along the kinabatangan river as the local guides are clearly under the wrong impression that these are Mossy-nest Swiftlets. Posted 2 years ago