Nest construction and egg-laying in edible-nest swiftlets Aerodramus spp. and the implications for harvesting

Abstract

White-nest swiftlet Aerodramus fuciphagus and black-nest swiftlet A. maximus were studied in Singapore. The energy and nutrients required for nest construction are easily acquired by foraging but the females may face a shortage of energy or depletion of stored lipids during egg formation. Removal of nests did not affect the size or quality of replacement nests or clutches, but may aggravate the lipid shortage. Nest removal did reduce breeding success in replacement nests and, in the white-nest swiftlet, disturbance to the colony resulted in an increased laying interval between 1st and 2nd eggs. Commercially exploited colonies should be left unharvested for the middle part of the breeding season to allow a period of successful reproduction. -from Authors