“I saw a flock of 15-18 House Swifts (Apus affinis subfurcatus) that had a shared nesting site in a limestone outcropping. Below shows five of the birds in flight.
“There were at least 6 nests, at different stages of construction, built abutting each other. This species is well known to build nests in a colony, in a communal fashion. One very incomplete nest allowed me some insight into nest building behaviour.
“Above shows one partner building the nest; this bird would stay inside the nest most of the time.
“A second bird would bring material intermittently and pass it to the first bird (above). Action is too fast for me to determine if there are any nest helpers or cooperative breeders.
“Above shows an adjacent nest that is almost complete and you can see only the tail of the bird that has come with material.”
Dato’ Dr Amar-Singh HSS
Ipoh, Perak, Malaysia
27th May 2018
Location: Ipoh, Perak, Malaysia
Habitat: Limestone outcroppings at outskirts of the city with secondary growth
