Micro Post: Sword-billed Hummingbird

Sword-billed hummingbird with its long bill.

One of the wonderful things about Sword-billed hummingbird (Ensifera ensifera) is the long beak that even longer from its own body. It’s also the biggest in its family with the averages length up to 14 cm (5.5 in) - not including its 8 cm (4 in) bill. While its weighs about 12 grams (0.4 oz).

It’s living in high elevation areas mostly from 2,500 m (8,200 ft) in Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela. The main purpose of sword-billed hummingbird is to pollinating the flowers with long corollas such as Passiflora mixta and angel's trumpets family (Brugmansia sanguine) where most other pollinators wouldn’t be able to pollinate it.

The flower that rely on the hummingbird to be pollinated.

The skeleton of sword-billed hummingbird.

Other than flower’s nectar they also feed on small spiders and insects as part of important sources of protein, especially during the breeding season. The insects are important to help proper develop their young. A nesting female can capture up to 2,000 insects a day.

The males will establish feeding territories and will aggressively chase away other males as well as other large insects - such as bumblebees and hawk moths that trying to feed in their territory.

Another interesting thing about the sword-billed hummingbird is they need to hold its long bill up high in order to balance while perching to avoid toppling over.

Micro Post: Victoria Crowned Pigeon

The closer look of Victoria crowned pigeon.

Commemorates the British monarch Queen Victoria, the Victoria crowned pigeon (Goura victoria) is the largest pigeon in their family. It is so easy to recognize by its size, bluish-grey pigeon with elegant blue lace-like crests, maroon breast, and red irises. It is part of ground dwelling pigeons from more than 40 species of pigeon can be found in New Guinea region.

Being the largest it reaches the size typically 73 to 75 cm (29 to 30 in) long and weight of up to 3.5 kg (7.7 lb). There are two other crowned pigeon that slightly smaller that also live in New Guinea.

The Victoria crowned pigeon at Gondwanaland Zoo Leipzig, Germany.

The Victoria crowned pigeon at San Diego Zoo.

Crowned pigeons have 16 tail feathers while there’re only 12 in any other pigeons. The easiest way to recognize the crowned pigeons is by its superb fan-shaped, lacy crest of plumes on the head of both sexes.

All crowned pigeons live on the forest floor, flying into the three only to roost or nest. Because of its size, they produce a loud clapping sound when it takes flight. They also have similar mating calls as the other two species of crown pigeons with courtship display.

This bird will enjoying walking on the land.

They also can easily found moving in pack.

Even though easily breed in captivity, the Victoria crowned pigeon become rarely in their own natural habitat due to logging and hunting for its plumes and meat. Trapping of pigeons to be kept alive for captive collections is now illegal, but is still likely to be occurring. Now you can see this bird in most zoos and bird parks all around the world. 

Giant Flying Bird Not Just a Myth

Haast's eagle try to capture it's prey the moa.

Legend about huge flying bird from native stories not just a myth. Few species of giant flying birds did exist not long ago. Even though they were not killed directly by men, but fighting with men over the same food source can be a bad thing too.

Haast’s eagle (Harpagornis moorei) is another giant birds that just extinct few hundred years ago from its native area, New Zealand. This giant bird has remained as a legend for Pouakai and Maori people until the truth was discovered.

The restoration of the skull.

Haast’s eagle became extinct around 1400 AD when their primary food resources had been hunted by the first Māori that came to the South Island of New Zealand. Compared to men that can easily change their food source, the Haast’s eagle had vanished together like their prey the moa.

The size of Haast’s eagle was even larger than the largest living vultures so it also the largest known true raptors. With the size of females were significantly larger than males, the weight of females were estimates to be in the range of 10–15 kg (22–33 lb) and males around 9–12 kg (20–26 lb).

The different in size between the size of Haast's eagle and its closest living relative, the little eagle.

The model of Haast's eagle attacking a moa at Te Papa. 

The main food sourced for the Haast’s eagle was the large flightless bird species known as moa, with body weight can reach up to fifteen times the weight of itself. The eagle was able to kill the giant bird by swooping it at the speeds up to 80 km/h (50 mph).

Family of Parrot

Scarlet macaw one of the most beautiful bird in parrot family.

We all love parrot because they are colorful, beautiful and playful bird. Maybe some of us would like to keep it as a pet. Anyway with the population of parrot that decreasing in their natural habitat we need to think it through before we decide to take it out of their lovely home.

The best things you want to know about parrot that there are large species of parrot consist under the order of Psittaciformes which includes cockatoos (family Cacatuidae). Even though parrots have close relationship with human as pet since long time ago, they still suite better with their natural environment - because bird needs to fly to be bird. Anyway the captive birds show intelligent with amusing behaviors, affectionate with human and other animals and even imitative many sounds, including human speech.

Parrots are playful bird, as can be seen here in the photo.

Cockatoo, notorious with their ability to imitate human speech.

The order Psittaciformes are divided into three superfamilies: the Psittacoidea ("true" parrots), the Cacatuoidea (cockatoos), and the Strigopoidea (New Zealand parrots). Most parrot live in topical and sub-tropical region with several species can be found in temperate region in Southern Hemisphere. The large diversity of parrots is in South America and Australia.

There are 387 extent species under order Psittaciformes belonging to 87 genera with the main classification.

3 main groups;

Superfamily Psittacoidea: true parrots

• Family Psittacidae
• Family Psittaculidae

Superfamily Cacatuoidea: cockatoos

• Family Cacatuidae

Superfamily Strigopoidea: New Zealand parrots

• Family Nestoridae
• Family Strigopidae

African grey parrot from Africa.

Golden parakeet is native to Brazil.

New Zealand kākā is one of few species in New Zealand.

From all of the species, 15 of them are already extinct and many other are listed under “Near threatened” to “Critically endangered” in the IUCN Red List categories Conservation status. So in order to ensure these species keep on survives as long as we can, we need to learn more about them and preserve as much as we can their natural habitat.

Tiny Pacific partotlet.

Red lory from Australia. 

Swift parrot another small species from Australia.

Western rosella - also from Australia.

Swiftlet With Edible Nest

Aerodramus fuciphagus one of the species that produce the edible nest.

Swallow is absolutely unique, where some species from this family known of swiftlets has an edible nest (as a medicine). The higher price of swiftlets nest make it important source of income. Hence people build buildings for their nest instead of traditionally hunt them in caves.

The swiftlets nests are popular among the Chinese and gain popularity every year for its health benefits (especially for the skin). This kind of nest had been used in China since 400 years ago an prepared as bird’s nest soup.

Swiftlets nests are classified into two major classes derived from the place where the nest had been obtained (in the building) and also the nest from the caves. Nests derived from building are more easily processed and have a first-class grade. While nests collected from caves contain foreign materials such as feathers and other mainly grass. So, this bird's nest should undergo a cleaning process before being marketed.

Swallows nest in the cave wall.

Ready to use bird's nest.

Nests in boxes for sale.

Type swiftlet that produce edible bird's nest is from the type (Cistothorus platensis) which is mostly found in Southeast Asia. These swiftlets are smaller in size with the size around 11 to 12 cm and weighing 15 to 18 grams. These birds have dark brown color and color is paler on the underside. The tail is slightly forked, with long wings and small. Muzzle and legs are black.

There are six (6) sub-species of swiftlets whose nests of this kind, namely;

• A. f. platensis - sub species found in Java, Bali and western parts of the Lesser Sunda Islands.
• A. f. inexpectatus - found in Andaman and Nicobar Islands, sometimes in Burma.
• A. f. dammermani - Flores Islands, known by only one specimen.
• A. f. micans - in the Lesser Sunda Islands (Sumba, Savu and Timor).
• A. f. vestitus - Sumatra and Borneo, and sometimes treated as different species Aerodramus vestitus.
• A. f. perplexus - Maratua Archipelago in the East of Borneo.

Although formerly the swiftlets nest were collected primarily from caves, now people start to build a nest’s house to facilitate the process of collecting the nest (besides it is more clean - because the bird’s nest containing less foreign material). Sometimes these buildings built in the center of small town that can be somehow disturbing for public.

What makes the price nest swiftlets expensive are the needs to be put everything in right conditions because the building used as home nest should meet the needs of swifts such as; lighting, humidity and temperature are equal as conditions in the cave. So the conditions in the building need to be a little bit dark, with humidity between 89% to 90% and a temperature between 28 ° C to 30 ° C.

Swiftlet's nest soup.

Bird's nests has been cleared.

Nest's building at Baan Laem, Phetchaburi, Thailand.

Since these swiftlets are species native to Southeast Asia, the countries producing the famous bird's nest is Indonesia, known as higher quality producer. Thailand produced a relatively thick nest and requires longer soaking or cooking time. Malaysia also produce nests containing more feathers (Feather Prime swiflet) and has a slightly lower price, but it is used for food industries. Vietnam produces the best bird's nest but have a very limited supply.

So it is a little bit about the swiftlets that produce edible nest. As this article merely provides basic information only, you’re encouraged to visit the swiftlets farms or attending any courses on the swiftlets farming techniques.