#swiftlet

[best-bird-tournament]

Swiftlet (Collocaliini) tribe

Which is the best bird?

Cave swiftlet

Scarce swift

Edible-nest swiftlet

Voting ended onSep 11, 2025

[critter-of-the-day]

17th of September 2024: Bornean Swiftlet

Another bird today, and another one with much taxonomic dispute: the Bornean Swiftlet (Collocalia dodgei). They were originally described in 1905, with the author claiming that while they were similar to C. linchi, they didn’t exactly match [1].

They are found in the upper parts of the mountains [2], having been originally discovered by being shot on the slopes of Mt. Kinabalu in northern Borneo [3]. It can be difficult to identify them when not resting in their nests, located in rocky areas [2]. They are very small, with their wings being 9 cm long [1], and as you may be able to tell by the picture, their body is even shorter.

While they were chilling as their own species for a few decades, when Somadikarta undertook a review of the genus, he considered them close enough to C. linchi to make them a subspecies [4]. This was undone in the early 2000s, though certain checklists still insist on keeping them as a subspecies), and identification still remains a challenge. Many images attributed to them are actually uncertain and may instead be the Plume-toed Swiftlet (C. affinis), as trying to differentiate them in flight is hard, as was pointed out in a paper called “Citizen science and dodgei records”. While experienced ornithologists can point them out, they’d have to “very familiar with the jizz of Plume-toed Swiftlet” [5]. Jizz here refers to the general appearance and movements of birds.

Sources: [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [Image] 

[triruntu]

#466, a cave swiftlet.

Requests for birds are open, updates happen on Thursdays. [project tag] | [kofi] [commissions] Find me on: [twitter]

[wtf-fun-factss]

The “Caviar of the East,” bird's nest soup is made from the nest of the endangered swiftlet bird, who uses it's own solidified saliva to make it's nest. – WTF Fun Facts

Source: What Is Bird's Nest Soup? (thespruceeats.com)

[bettysgardenswift]

Lover Anniversary Project💘

Hey guys! So I really wanted to do something special for the 1 year anniversary of Lover and I’m sure this will be one of the many projects I decide to do.

For this one I want to have one person per song (18 people) and you would submit a 150 word (or less) paragraph on what that song means to you, a memory you attach to the song, or how you relate to the song, as well as a photo of you recreating the Lover pose (I’ll do the background editing).

So if you’re interested either dm me or comment to claim a song, then I’ll dm you additional info!

Submissions will be due on July 9th (how appropriate) so I can spend time editing.

Here are the songs that are available!!!

IFTYE: taken

Cruel Summer: taken

Lover: taken

The Man: taken

The Archer: taken

ITHK: taken

MAATHP: taken

Paper Rings: taken

Cornelia Street: taken

DBATC: taken

London Boy: taken

SYGB: taken

False God: taken

YNTCD: taken

Afterglow: taken (by me lol)

ME!: taken

INTHAF: taken

Daylight: taken

[earthstory]

The story of workers obtaining "Edible birds nests" and the voyage of those materials into Michelin star restaurants as one of the world's most expensive ingredients. While a delicacy, the birds that make these nests are currently endangered (read more here: https://www.audubon.org/news/birds-nest-soup-more-popular-ever-thanks-swiftlet-house-farms).

[swiftiek8]

how we rang in Lover dropping 💗 @taylorswift @taylornation

[swiftyfam]

Be defined by the things that you love.

@taylorswift @taylornation