Search results
Results From The WOW.Com Content Network
The edible-nest swiftlet (Aerodramus fuciphagus), also known as the white-nest swiftlet, is a small bird of the swift family which is found in Southeast Asia. Its opaque and whitish bird nest is made exclusively of solidified saliva and is the main ingredient of bird's nest soup , a delicacy of Chinese cuisine.
Swiftlet nests have been used as a delicacy for over 400 years, most often as soup. [1] They are particularly prized in Chinese cuisine due to the rarity, high protein content and rich flavor, and are among the most expensive animal products consumed by humans, [2] with prices up to about $4,300 per pound ($9,500/kg) depending on grading. [3]
The nests of Aerodramus swiftlets are constructed with saliva as a major component. In two species, saliva is the only material used, and the nests are collected for the famous Chinese delicacy 'bird's nest soup', the over-collection of which puts pressure on the swiftlet populations.
The swift family remains one of the more complicated groups of birds in taxonomic research, but the swiftlet tribe is a rather well-defined group. Its internal systematics is confusing; the plumage is usually dull, with shades of black, brown, and gray; from their outward appearance, most species are very similar.
The hardened saliva nests of the edible-nest swiftlet and the black-nest swiftlet have been used in Chinese cooking for over 400 years, most often as bird's nest soup. [21] Over-harvesting of this expensive delicacy has led to a decline in the numbers of these swiftlets, [ 22 ] [ 23 ] especially as the nests are also thought to have health ...
Collocalia is a genus of swifts, containing some of the smaller species termed "swiftlets".Formerly a catch-all genus for these, a number of its former members are now normally (though not by all authors) placed in Aerodramus.
The Himalayan swiftlet has a twittering chit-chit roosting call, and also has a piercing teeree-teeree-teeree call.. What distinguishes many, but not all, swiftlet species from other swifts and indeed almost all other birds (the oilbird being an exception) is their ability to use a simple but effective form of echolocation to navigate through the darkness of the caves where they roost at night ...
Mascarene swiftlet (Aerodramus francicus) Indian swiftlet (Aerodramus unicolor) Philippine swiftlet (Aerodramus mearnsi) Moluccan swiftlet (Aerodramus infuscatus) Subspecies: A. i. sororum, A. i. infuscatus, & A. i. ceramensis. Sulawesi swiftlet (Aerodramus sororum) Seram swiftlet (Aerodramus ceramensis) Mountain swiftlet (Aerodramus hirundinaceus)