Archive for April, 2006
worldwildlife.org
Based on an interview with Ruwindiyarto (Telapak)
The modern history of swiftlet bird nests harvest in East Kalimantan started in the 1940s. The communities had harvested the bird nests in the areas of Telang Teba and Sungai Peta then. Some community groups believed that several clans had inherited rights to manage the bird nests from generation to generation. The harvesting of bird nests stopped during the Japanese occupation, and then started again in the 1960s. Anecdotal evidence indicates that the swiftlet bird nests had been important commodities since the late 18 century, bartered for tiles and china from China.
Pak Jaui Puling is a community leader and village headperson of Long Peso, Subdistrict of Long Peso. He is also the head of a group which manages the harvest of swiftlet bird nests. The group’s name is Semangat Anda (Your Enthusiasm) or abbreviated to SA. The group comprises eighteen households. One of Pak Jaui Puling sons has his own group, notably Semua Anggota Harus Berhasil (All Members Must be Successful) or abbreviated to SAHB, that comprises twelve households. Those two groups are considered as prominent community groups among other bird nests harvesters along the river Kayan. In 1993 the community-based bird nests havester groups within the limits of Subdistrict of Long Peso established an association, with Sulang Kedung as the chairman and Pak Jaui Puling as the association advisor. The association had received endorsement from the Subdistrict government. The association is the umbrella of 41 community-based bird nests harvester groups (comprising about 400 households) from fourteen villages within the limits of Subdistricts of Long Peso and Tanjung Palas. At the district level (District of Bulungan), there is a similar association, namely the Swiftlet Bird Nests Harvesters Cooperative, led by Pak Mendhan in Jelarai. Pak Mendhan is also the prominent sponsor for most of the community harvesters’ groups.
Pak Jaui Puling started harvesting bird nests in early 70s. Before that year Pak Jaui Puling was a gaharu and rattan harvester. However, the oldest caves managed by Pak Jaui Puling and his groups had been discovered only in 1977. In the beginning the group started with five caves. Nowadays they manage twelve caves. Like other harvesters along the river Kayan, each cave is given a name. Ownership of the caves are based on the history of who discovered them and is deliberated with other harvester groups. Conflicts over the management of caves are a common occurrence; for instance, the Ahli Waris (Inheritance) cave in Lepok Kepang. The cave was discovered by Pak Jaui Puling’s group. It had been managed for a while by this group, but later Pak Kirib claimed that the cave belonged to his ancestors and that he is the owner of the cave. The conflict was resolved through a long deliberation. The Ahli Waris cave is nowadays managed by Pak Kirib and his group. Many other cases indicate that most conflicts over a cave’s management are resolved through direct deliberation among the harvester groups. This atmosphere has, however, changed recently, after intensive intervention by non-local big investors, also involving local government and police officers. The situation then becomes very complicated.
The swiftlet bird nest havester groups along the river Kayan regularly pay taxes to the government. Pak Jaui Puling showed notes and receipts of tax payments for the past six years, with data on size of harvests, along with the percentage of taxation and amount of tax payment made to the local government. Since early 1998 the groups have been faced with a new tax by the local government, notably Forest Products Fee, which has been imposed by a local government regulation. The Provincial Forestry Service (Dinas Kehutanan Tk. I) collects the fees. However, there is no implementation guidance on the new tax, which then confuses harvester groups like Pak Jaui Puling’s. They have not made any payments to the government on the new tax. They are very worried about this uncertain situation. They are worried that they will be forced to pay the accumulated tax when the government someday asks for payment. If this happens, it’ll be easy for the government to accuse the community harvester groups of disobeying their obligation to pay the tax. This has happened in many similar cases throughout the country where the government has used this method to takeover an established community practice. [example?] It is also the case, where in the name of increasing regional gross domestic product (GDP), that the local government will invite involvement of big investors. Often the government may use security forces to back up this scenario.
If we look at the stability of harvest data over years, we can assume that the harvest system employed by the community groups is based on conservation principles. The harvest system is based on taking two harvests, then eggs are allowed to hatch and juvenile birds fledged, then another harvest is made and the caves cleaned. This method appears to allow the swiftlet populations to regenerate. The harvesters are aware if they over-exploit the resources they will in turn loss the benefits for the following generations. Therefore, these kinds of community-based practices in utilizing natural resources should be protected. They should not be taken over by more commerical approaches, which might be more effective in terms of “production” and more efficient in terms of “costs”, BUT ????
April 28th, 2006
trubus-online.com
Oleh trubus
Berdasarkan pemberitaan harian umum Kompas 7 Maret 2006, seekor burung walet di Pangkalpinang, Bangka Belitung, terpapar virus avian influenza (AI). Berita itu cukup membuat panik para pengusaha walet di dalam dan luar negeri. Wajar jika importir di Hongkong maupun Amerika Serikat langsung mengontak para eksportir di tanahair. Itu juga yang dialami penulis, “Telepon tak pernah berhenti berdering dari pagi sampai malam.”
Untungnya, sehari kemudian di media massa yang sama tertanggal 8 Maret 2006 dimuat tulisan yang berisi bantahan dari drh Widiyantono MM, kepala Dinas Pertanian Peternakan dan Ketahanan Pangan Kota Pangkalpinang, Provinsi Kepulauan Bangka Belitung. “Tidak ada virus flu burung dalam darah burung walet yang diindikasikan menderita flu burung.” Itu ditegaskan setelah dilakukan uji RT PCR (Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction) pada matrial yang sama.
Negatif
Uji RT PCR yang keakuratannya sangat tinggi dan diakui secara internasional menunjukkan hasil negatif. Itu artinya walet tidak terjangkit fl u burung. Tentu saja hasil pengujian itu sangat melegakan dunia perwaletan. Dan yang lebih penting lagi, ternyata tulisan di Kompas tanggal 8 Maret 2006 yang memberitakan bahwa pada 2004 di Pangkalpinang terjadi pemusnahan massal burung walet, juga tidak benar. Menurut Widiyantono, narasumber pemberitaan tersebut, yang benar adalah pemusnahan ayam dan itik yang positif terkena AI di Kelurahan Keramat, Kecamatan Rangkui, Pangkalpinang. Jadi, tidak ada sama sekali pemusnahan terhadap burung walet.
Perihal temuan yang sebenarnya terjadi pada walet di Pangkalpinang sudah diinformasikan kepada para importir sarang walet di luar negeri. Namun, kekhawatiran negara-negara importir memberlakukan larangan masuk sarang walet masih membayangi para pengusaha walet. Maklum, wabah avian influenza bukan masalah nasional lagi, melainkan sudah mendunia. Untuk itulah peran serta pemerintah diharapkan.
Pemerintah seyogyanya bisa bertindak bijaksana. Pasalnya, perniagaan sarang walet turut menyumbang devisa cukup besar bagi negara. Menurut Dra Rahayu Dewi S.Y. Mende, M.Si, dosen Universitas Negeri Surabaya sekaligus mahasiswa S3 Institut Pertanian Bogor yang kini tekun meneliti walet, sarang walet berada di posisi kedua penyumbang devisa negara dari perdagangan satwa.
Setiap tahun paling tidak 150 ton sarang walet rumah dari seluruh nusantara memenuhi kebutuhan konsumennya di mancanegara. Itu belum termasuk sarang walet gua yang mencapai kurang lebih 100 ton. Sekarang ini Indonesia masih tercatat sebagai penghasil sarang walet terbesar yang memasok 80% pasar dunia.
Bisnis walet telah menghidupi ratusan ribu manusia. Hal yang lebih penting lagi burung walet bagian dari ekosistem yang keberadaannya dibutuhkan untuk menjaga kestabilan ekosistem. Seharusnya karunia sumber daya hayati yang sangat berharga ini harus kita syukuri, dijaga, dan dimanfaatkan sebaik-baiknya untuk kemaslahatan bangsa Indonesia secara keseluruhan.
Kecil kemungkinan
Menurut drh Widiyantono kemungkinan walet tertular fl u burung sangat kecil. Kecuali jika walet bisa hinggap di kandang ayam dan kemudian makan kotorannya. Sebab, virus avian infl uenza akan bertahan agak lama bila berada di kotoran unggas. Namun jika berada di udara bebas, ia akan lebih cepat mati.
Padahal kita tahu, walet si penghasil liur emas itu, selama 10 -12 jam terbang dan tak pernah hinggap lantaran kakinya bukan untuk bertengger. Meskipun begitu untuk mengantisipasi kemungkinan penyebaran fl u burung melalui unggas, termasuk di dalamnya walet, para peternak harus selalu menjaga sanitasi kandang. Penulis berharap para pemain walet tidak perlu gundah, apalagi putus asa. Budidaya walet masih menggairahkan. Pasar sarang walet tetap terbuka. Sebab, bagi masyarakat Tionghoa, mengkonsumsi sarang walet adalah tradisi yang telah berlangsung selama ratusan tahun. Mereka percaya, sarang walet dapat meningkatkan stamina, kesehatan tubuh, dan benteng pertahanan berbagai penyakit.
Penelitian-penelitian modern di luar negeri membuktikan hal itu. Sebut saja penelitian yang dilakukan F Biddle dan G. Belyavin di College Hospital Medical School , London, pada 1962, atau penelitian Harold Jennings dan Dennis L. Kasper di Harvard Medical School , Boston, pada 1986. Di sarang walet ditemukan zat-zat tertentu yang dapat meredam penularan influenza.
Bukti empiris dan ilmiah menunjukkan dengan mengkonsumsi sarang walet, tubuh kita relatif kebal terhadap serangan infl uenza. Dugaan sementara sarang walet mungkin juga mengandung zat-zat yang dapat menaikkan kekebalan tubuh terhadap avian infl uenza H5N1. Untuk itu diperlukan penelitian lebih lanjut. (Dr Boedi Mranata, biolog dan pakar walet
April 27th, 2006
americanartifacts.com
Richard & Diane Van vleck- Personal Pages
Barn swallow colony sites are frequently destroyed when old buildings are demolished or sold to new owners, who wish to close them up. Attracting swallows to buildings where they will be allowed to nest has been simply a matter of opening a door or window, perhaps, providing nesting ledges, and leaving the rest to luck. The chances of attracting barn swallows to a specific building are about as good as attracting bats to a bat box. When a building housing a colony of swallows is to be closed, it should be done after the nesting season. Even then, chances are only fair that the colony will establish itself at a safe site the following spring. Homeowners and farmers go to great length to birdproof their garages and other outbuildings to keep out house sparrows. As old barns fall down, fewer and fewer prime swallow sites remain each year, although bridges offer adequate shelter to many colonies. One potential way to establish a new colony in a building is to transport a nest with young from a doomed site. By moving the nest very slowly, the parents will follow and continue to care for the young. When the old site is lost, it would be hoped that the parents, and perhaps, the entire colony would then nest in the new building the following year. The opportunity to test this theory arose in the summer of 1992, when the H.H.S. mail room was closed off to better control humidity.
Our swallow colony is located in the lower part of our barn in a large room (1300 sq ft). A single pair of swallows moved from the colony room to the mail room in 1990. When they could not be discouraged from nest building, I put up a shelf where I wanted the nest and they instantly switched their focus to the shelf. Previously, they were building on various tools hanging on the wall. We now had a working relationship in which I was committed to not forgetting to always leave at least one door open and to stay out of their way as much as possible, and, they seemed to agree to nest on the shelf, and not above stacks of Home Ground or other supplies or tools. In addition, I agreed to not suddenly turn on the lights at night and scare them off the nest.
The swallows and I got along quite well that summer. They had finished their nest late in the season and only raised one brood. However, in 1991, they again refused to nest with the main colony even though I was careful to keep the mailroom doors closed. Whenever I opened the large door to get out my bike, the pair of swallows would instantly enter and check out their empty nest, even though the other swallows had long since begun nesting in the colony room. So, I gave in again and opened the doors for them. They raised two broods that summer, and, although helpers would come to help feed the young, no other nest was ever begun in the mail room. At the same time, new nests were continually being built in the colony room and plenty of space was available in the large room. We apparently had a pair of “loners”. It is likely that at least one of the pair was the same individual each year.
In 1992, the mail room was going to be enclosed to better control humidity, and, the pair of swallows would not be able to nest there. In early summer, it appeared that the swallows had lost interest in the room, so the doors were left open for several days. Five days after the doors were opened a swallow was seen leaving the mail room nest and a clutch of eggs were found in the nest. At this point, I considered trying to move the nest, a little at a time, to the main colony room, but, decided this would be too disruptive to the entire colony. Also, this pair had refused to join the colony on their own for three years, always waiting for the first opportunity to enter the mail room. It was unlikely that I could force them to join the group now. Instead, I decided to move the nest to a room in the upper barn. If they took to this location, it could be theirs for years to come, with no human interference.
Since it was mid-summer, the in-transit nestlings would have to be protected from the sun while the nest was slowly moved 72 feet along the barn and then 14 feet up a ladder to the entrance of their new room. A louvered video monitor case was used for this purpose. The case was mounted on a tripod two feet from the mailroom nest and left in position for two days to allow the adults to become familiar with it.
Preparation for the move began soon after daybreak to allow as much time as possible to complete the move. A shaped piece of hardware cloth was fitted to the nest to prevent it from falling apart and a long bladed knife was gently worked between the nest and the wall to free the nest, which was then placed in the metal case. Since the nest had been built on a swallow shelf, it could be returned to the original position, if the adults didn’t accept the change.
Luckily, after 8 minutes of flying to the nest’s previous position and circling, one of the adults landed on the nest and instantly fed one of the young. Soon both adults were tending to the young as if nothing had happened. After 15 minutes, the box was lowered 2 feet so that the tripod legs rested on the floor. As before, the adults went to the previous position, flying in tight circles, and totally ignoring the nest below. This time they discovered the nest in 5 minutes. Next the box was moved three feet at a time toward the door, which was 20 feet from the original nest site. After each move, the swallows would circle the exact point of the previous location for several minutes before locating the nest.
Once outside, the nest had to be moved 42 feet along the side of the barn, around a corner, and 30 feet further to the new entrance which was 14 feet above the ground. The incremental moves went smoothly until the entrance to the main colony was reached. But, despite some confusion, we reached the corner of the barn not far behind schedule. At one point the adults were frequently perching on a lever of a walking cultivator and, also, having more trouble than usual finding the nest. On the hunch that this perch was providing a reference point for them to find the nest, I began pulling the cultivator along with each nest move, and this appeared to help them find the nest. I had to give this up when we approached the corner of the barn because of several obstacles in the path.
When the nest was moved partially around the end of the barn, the adults were not able to find it. As before, it was in plain site, but after 15 minutes with no success, I moved the nest back to it’s previous position 3 feet away. This did not work either. The adults were now returning to the mail room and flying somewhat randomly around the path we had taken. Out of desperation, I returned the nest to the entrance to the mail room, where it was discovered in 3 minutes. Then, we once again began the 32′ journey to the corner of the barn. This time, I negotiated the corner with very short moves (less than 1 foot). Once around the corner, there were no obstacles and no nearby reference points and the move progressed rapidly. The move up the ladder also went without a hitch. In fact, the swallows seemed to cope with vertical movement better than horizontal. The final step was to very gradually move the nest into the barn, where the adults had, perhaps, never before entered. This, also, went smoothly and the adults seemed to adapt quite nicely to their new room. All four young fledged and the adults had begun construction of a mud nest directly above the tripod-mounted nest. However, the swallow nesting season was winding down and it was much too late to begin a new brood, but, the beginning of a new nest was a hopeful sign that they would return to nest in this room the following year.
In 1993, no swallows were observed entering the new room. Although swallows would occasionally enter the mail room when a door was left open, it appeared that they were chasing insects and not looking for a nest site. There is still hope that one of the swallows that fledged from the new room will return to nest there in the future. While this successful move demonstrates that active swallow nests can be moved from sites in an emergency, such as planned demolition or construction, it offers no evidence that a new colony can be established by such a move.
Addendum: Since the above article was written, no swallows have shown an interest in nesting in the 2nd floor room where the nest was introduced in 1992. The old mail room has served many purposes since then - it is now becoming a woodworking shop. Swallows have been discouraged from nesting there, but they show interest every year, whenever they find the large rear door open.
• barn swallow young in nest before moving. This is a brood of the previous year. Note the small platform nailed to the beam. Providing such shelves serves two important purposes. It allows the human to select where the swallow builds its nest and it provides a safe base to prevent the nest from falling.
• The day before the move, with the moving box in place
• The nest is placed in the moving box. This created a surprisingly difficult problem for the swallows, who hovered 18″ away at the original nestsite, ignoring their nest and young even though they could see and hear the young. After 8 minutes, the new location of the nest was discovered and the young were fed as frequently as usual, the adults going directly to the moving box each time.
• The move begins
• Feeding the young, now 6 feet along on their journey
• At the 12 foot mark - note both adults on the cow skull horn
• Finally outside, the nest is protected from direct sunlight by the louvred box.
• The adults seemed to have adjusted to the enclosed box, but still had difficulty acccepting each small move of the nest.
• The ladder to the second floor opening. A small platform which hooked over the rungs of the ladder allowed incremental moves up the ladder.
• Ready to enter the new room. The box was fitted to the tripod again and moved several feet into the room, where the nesting was allowed to continue undisturbed. Several helpers eventually began to enter the new room and feed the young, just as they had in the previous location. However, when the young fledged, the new room was ignored.
April 26th, 2006
americanartifacts.com
PURPOSE
The use of artificial nests to attract barn swallows to a new site depends on their acceptance of these nests. To test the acceptance of artificial nests by barn swallows, the nests were offered to our colony of swallows, who also had access to old nests and plenty of unused space to build new nests.
METHODS
What had begun this winter as a nesting shelf project to encourage multiple nestings of barn swallows has evolved into something quite different. My goal was to make a small nesting shelf that fit the swallows’ requirements while blending in with the architecture of a house. The idea was that more people would be willing to place multiple swallow shelves on their house if they appeared to be a part of the house. At the same time, I took careful measurements of 40 swallow nests and began making a variety of artificial nests. The nests were made of various materials molded over a wire form secured to a backboard which could easily be screwed to a wall. Even if it turned out that these nests would not be used, they might encourage swallows to build their own nest nearby, sort of acting as a decoy.
A portion of the swallow colony room was modified for the shelf and nest test. A plastic tarp was stapled under the joists, covering both the old nests and the joists upon which the nests were built, effectively making a new lower ceiling. The locations of the old nests were noted so I could avoid placing a shelf or artificial nest directly under an old nest to rule out nest site fidelity as an important factor in the swallows’ selecting a new site. Simulated walls were then constructed of sections of cheap paneling secured to 2×4’s to provide a slick surface similar to modern plastic or painted siding. The partitions extended down 24″ from the ceiling. The other side of the colony room was left unchanged, making available both previously built natural nests and plenty of unused space on the hand hewn beams for building new nests.
When our swallows began to return (a week late this year), several of the turned shelves were mounted on the panels. The swallows immediately began dabbing mud on each shelf. No other nest building activity was noted. Happy that they were apparently claiming the shelves, I mounted several artificial nests between the shelves, but no closer than 4 feet from them or each other. The swallows instantly began adding mud to the nests and ignored the shelves, except to use as convenient perches. I decided to place the artificial nests lower than the 1 1/2″ rim to ceiling distance required, in case the swallows needed to add some mud as part of the nest building ritual. Most of the nests in use have the rims built up. I haven’t measured the exact height of their mud additions yet. I plan to move some of the unused nests up to the 1 1/2″ clearance for the second nesting to see what happens.
RESULTS
On May 19, 2001, 7 artificial nests had eggs and 2 previously built natural nests had eggs. No new nests had been built, either on the beams or on the new shelves. By May 31, 2001, nine artificial nests had eggs or young and 3 natural nests were used. and still there was no new nest construction. Two of the artificial nests in use were mounted in the undisturbed area on the side of the beams. The other seven were mounted under the tarp on the simulated walls. There are still plenty of both unused artificial and old natural nests available. Several more pair are likely to nest soon and, later, the second brood is often reared in a different nest, so much more will be happening this summer.
The overwhelming acceptance and even preference for the artificial nests among the swallows in our barn colony suggests that these nests may play an important role in attracting swallows to new sites. Just as important, those people finding a swallow nest blocking their front door or or otherwise causing a problem may find that placing an artificial nest off to one side of the door or even on a different wall may be the surest way to coax the swallows to move.
April 26th, 2006
korantempo.com
Sejak ratusan tahun yang lalu, kekaisaran Cina mengetahui adanya sarang burung gua yang dapat memberikan manfaat kesehatan bagi mereka yang mengkonsumsinya.
M. NOERDJITO
PENELITI ZOOLOGI PADA PUSAT PENELITIAN BIOLOGI LIPI
Sejak ratusan tahun yang lalu, kekaisaran Cina mengetahui adanya sarang burung gua yang dapat memberikan manfaat kesehatan bagi mereka yang mengkonsumsinya. Burung penghasil sarang yang dapat dimakan ini tidak lain adalah burung walet Aerodramus fuciphagus.
Di kekaisaran Cina, sarang walet hanya diperoleh di Pulau Hainan, sebuah pulau kecil di Cina bagian selatan. Kebutuhan yang sangat tinggi menyebabkan harga sarang walet menjadi sangat mahal sehingga pada waktu itu hanya terbeli oleh keluarga kaisar. Itu pun diperkirakan masih tidak mencukupi. Karena itu, Kaisar Cina mengutus para pedagang untuk mencari sarang walet dari daerah lain. Dalam perjalanan ke selatan, para “utusan” kaisar itu menemukan bahwa sarang yang mereka cari terdapat di Sarawak dan Jawa. Di kedua daerah itu, sarang walet belum dimanfaatkan sebagai makanan. Terjadilah perdagangan sarang walet antara kerajaan di Jawa dan kekaisaran Cina.
Secara alami, burung walet beristirahat dan berbiak di dalam gua yang gelap total, yang umumnya berada pada tebing-tebing curam. Untuk mencapai mulut gua walet, para pengunduh menggunakan bambu, tangga bambu, atau tali yang kadang-kadang dilengkapi injakan. Banyak di antara mulut gua yang berada tepat di tempat pecahnya gelombang laut sehingga untuk dapat memasuki gua perlu memperhitungkan saat pasang-surut air laut. Pada langit-langit gua umumnya terdapat batuan yang menggantung, keras, dan runcing yang siap membentur kepala para pengunduh sarang yang kurang hati-hati. Lantai dasar gua umumnya tidak rata, dan bahkan banyak terdapat lekukan-lekukan menyerupai sumur besar yang dalam yang siap menelan para pemburu sarang yang kurang waspada atau yang bernasib malang. Keterbatasan populasi walet serta risiko pengambilan yang demikian tinggi menyebabkan harga sarang walet dari gua menjadi sangat tinggi. Harga 1 kilogram sarang walet dari gua dapat mencapai 15 juta rupiah.
Rumah walet
Keberuntungan serta akal budi manusia menuntun mereka menciptakan rumah walet. Pembuatan rumah walet diawali dengan diisinya bagian-bagian rumah tua yang gelap dan sedikit lembab oleh sekelompok walet. Di Indonesia, rumah kuno yang menjadi rumah walet antara lain terdapat di Kota Muntok dan Belinyu di Bangka serta Sedayu di Jawa Timur. Di Kota Demak, ada sebuah rumah (kuno) walet yang setiap panen menghasilkan sekitar 150 kg sarang–padahal setiap tahun dipanen lebih dari enam kali. Harga 1 kilogram sarang walet dari rumah itu dapat mencapai 20 juta rupiah. Keberhasilan berbagai rumah walet kuno telah mengilhami beberapa orang untuk meniru suasana gelap dan lembabnya rumah walet kuno. Beberapa dari rumah “tiruan” tersebut ditempati oleh populasi walet. Namun, lebih banyak yang tidak atau belum berhasil. Ketidakberhasilan ini umumnya terjadi karena para pengusaha umumnya meniru bangunan bakal rumah walet yang belum berhasil. Rumah walet yang sudah berproduksi sama sekali tidak boleh dikunjungi orang lain sehingga sedikit kemungkinannya untuk ditiru. Faktor keamanan menjadi pertimbangan dalam membangun rumah walet sehingga bakal rumah walet banyak yang dibuat di tengah kota. Untuk lebih mengamankan agar bangunan dapat menghasilkan sarang, banyak orang merancang rumah walet sekaligus sebagai tempat usaha ataupun tempat tinggal. Di Kota Sungailiat ada bangunan bakal rumah walet dengan rancangan lantai pertama sebagai rumah makan, lantai kedua sebagai rumah tinggal, dan lantai ketiga sebagai rumah walet. Pemilik sama sekali tidak memperhitungkan, atau mungkin juga memang tidak mengetahui, bahwa walet berpotensi sebagai penyebar penyakit yang bersifat anthropo-zoonosis. Penyakit-penyakit anthropo-zoonosis dapat ditularkan kepada manusia melalui air liur atau kotoran walet, serta gigitan berbagai serangga, terutama nyamuk.
Kurang perhitungan
Satu kekurangan besar dalam perhitungan telah terjadi. Secara alami, walet makan serangga terbang yang seluruhnya masih dihasilkan oleh alam. Ketersediaan pakan pun relatif terbatas dan sangat bergantung pada keadaan alam sehingga populasi walet yang dapat didukung oleh suatu kawasan pun menjadi terbatas. Di lain pihak, daya jelajah walet untuk mencari pakan juga ada batasnya. Misalnya dari satu kawasan tersedia sejumlah serangga terbang yang dapat “diolah” oleh suatu populasi walet menjadi 100 kg sarang. Jika pada kawasan tersebut terdapat sebuah rumah walet, rumah walet tersebut dapat menghasilkan 100 kg sarang walet per tahun. Namun, jika di daerah tersebut terdapat 100 buah rumah walet, rata-rata setiap rumah hanya akan menghasilkan 1 kg sarang setiap tahun. Suatu kenyataan bahwa ada rumah walet yang setiap tahun dapat menghasilkan sekitar 125 kg sarang. Karena itu, tidaklah mengherankan pula jika banyak rumah walet yang sejak dibangun belum pernah dihuni oleh seekor walet pun. Hal ini menjadikan banyak investasi yang sangat merugikan–suatu impian yang membuat linglung.
April 25th, 2006
Prices soar in bid to harvest birds’ nests
ecologyasia.com/news/bangkokpost
Concession revenues could hit B1.5bn
Amnart Thongdee
Prices for concessions to harvest swallows’ nests in Chumphon soared on the second day of bidding with a high bid of 228 million baht at the provincial administration centre.
Bids for five concessions to collect the culinary delicacies were expected to raise 1,500 million baht by the end of the process on May 30.
Seven companies bid yesterday for the second concession contract in tambon Pak Nam administration, which has four swallows’ nest islands.
Golden State made the highest bid of 228 million baht above a median of 28 million baht.
Other bidders include B.Y Business Co (143 million baht), Southern Andaman (133.5 million), Saikaew Thurakij (130 million), Ruamphon Panit (88.4 million), Siam Nest (79 million), and Piyayotha Construction (61 million).
Highest bidder Golden State is a Bangkok-based firm thought to have close ties with several Democrat MPs.
On the first day of bidding B.Y Business snapped up the first concession to harvest nests in tambon Hatsairee administration organisation with the top bid of 221 million baht.
More than 100 police supervised the bidding to prevent collusion among bidders. Rivalry for contracts is intense and those holding concessions have been known to shoot trespassers to protect the valuable nests.
Chumphon governor Mekhin Methavikul said collusion was unlikely given the wide difference in bids.
Officials said three committees chaired by a deputy governor would handle the bidding process.
Rang Nok Laem Thong (Siam) manager Police Major-General Prasit Ngamkhamprom said the division of bird’s nest concessions would not affect the company’s business.
He said the company was a long-time concessionaire on 22 islands in the four provinces and had held the concession in Chumphon for more than 60 years.
Maj-Gen Prasit said the company would bid for three contracts in tambon Hatsairee, tambon Pak Khlong and the provincial administration organisation. Concession duties for the five contracts would probably exceed one billion baht.
Twenty-one firms had expressed an interest in bidding for the Hatsairee bird’s nest concession _ eight were based in Chumphon, six in Bangkok, two in Trang and one each in Phuket, Ratchaburi, Phang Nga, Songkhla and Prachuab Khiri Khan.
The bidding panel has set median prices for the five concessions totalling 281.1 million baht. It is expected, however, that bidding for all concessions could reach more than 1.5 billion baht.
© Copyright The Post Publishing Public Co.,
April 24th, 2006
.biologists.org
J Hegde and EC Stephenson
Department of Biology, University of Rochester, NY 14627.
The Drosophila maternal effect gene swallow has a role in localizing bicoid mRNA at the anterior margin of the oocyte during oogenesis, and a poorly characterized role in nuclear divisions in early embryogenesis. We have examined the distribution of swallow protein during oogenesis and embryogenesis using anti-swallow antibodies. During oogenesis, high levels of swallow protein are present in basal nurse cell cytoplasm, although small amounts are also present at the anterior oocyte margin, the site of bicoid RNA localization. Only a small fraction of swallow protein is in a position to interact directly with bicoid RNA during localization. The asymmetric distribution of swallow protein is disrupted in swallow ovaries, in which bicoid RNA becomes unlocalized late in oogenesis. swallow protein is uniformly distributed in eggs, but becomes localized to nuclei during early mitotic divisions in early embryogenesis. swallow protein enters each nucleus at the beginning of mitosis, occupies a position complementary to that of condensed chromatin, and leaves each nucleus at the end of mitosis. We show examples of nuclear division defects in swallow mutant embryos, and suggest that the abnormal nuclear divisions in early swallow embryos reflect a second function for swallow protein that contributes to abdominal segmentation defects common in swallow embryos.
April 21st, 2006
borneodelights.com/library
Edible bird’s nest can be categorised into two main types according to the location they are harvested from: cave nest and house nest.
Cave nest
Cave nest are mainly harvested from natural caves in eastern Sarawak and Sabah (two Malaysian states on the island of Borneo). These caves are scattered in the state’s various forest reserves, natural parks and coastal islands. The more famous of these caves are located at Niah, Kakus, Baram and Tinjar.
These caves differ in sizes and heights, but mostly are found on high cliffs facing the sea. Therefore the methods of harvesting differ according to the condition of the caves, and the harvesters often face considerable amount of danger when harvesting the nests.
Since cave nests are “made” by free, naturally-living swallows, some consider them to be more valuable than house nests, and they often fetch a higher price. Cave nest generally contains more dirt and feather than house nest.
House nest
House nest is made by swiftlets that nest under the roof of houses in the countryside. Since many believed that having swiftlets in their house is a sign of good omen, not to mention the prospect of a lucrative trade, it wasn’t long before houses are abandoned to encourage the swiflets to move in.
Indonesians started encouraging swiftlets to nest in empty abandoned houses since the Dutch colonial times. Needless to say, house nest are those harvested from these “swallow houses”.
House nest used to be a specialty of Indonesia, especially common in the coastal areas of central Java, but nowadays other areas have started to produce bird’s nest in the same manner.
Generally, the texture of house nest are smoother compared to those of cave nest, and with less feathers and other contaminants.
April 20th, 2006
dephut.go.id/informasi
Pendahuluan
Ciri khas dari burung walet adalah sayap panjang dan runcing, menunjuk ke belakang saat terbang, ekor pendek persegi atau panjang menajam, kaki sangat kecil. Burung walet jarang tertengker di pohon, biasanya beristirahat dengan cara bergantungan pada dinding karang dengan kukunya yang tajam.
Beberapa jenis walet membuat sarang dengan air liurnya. Sarang jenis inilah yang dapat dimakan sehingga mempunyai nilai ekonomis yang tinggi. Jenis walet di Indonesia yang sarangnya dapat dimakan adalah dari jenis walet sarang putih (Aerodramus fuciphagus) dan walet sarang hitam (Aerodramus maximus).
Manfaat Ekonomis
Sarang burung walet yang tersusun oleh air liur burung walet tersebut mempunyai daya jual yang tinggi karena sarang tersebut dapat dimakan (edible). Sarang tersebut biasanya dimasak untuk campuran obat tradisional atau makanan mewah.
Manfaat ekologis
Burung walet sampai saat ini lebih dikenal dari sisi ekonomisnya saja. Padahal burung walet mempunyai fungsi ekologis yang tidak kalah pentingnya. Sebagai burung pemakan serangga, burung walet berpetensi besar sebagai pengendali serangga hama.
Teknis Budidaya
Burung walet secara alami membuat sarang di dindng-dinding gua. Secara buatan dapat dibangun gedung yang kondisi di dalamnya dibuat sedemikian rupanya sehingga mirip dengan kondisi gua tempat habitat asli burung walet.
Yang harus diperhatikan adalah saat pemanenan sarang burung walet tersebut tidak mengganggu telur/anakan dari burung walet agar kelestariannya terjaga.
Potensi Walet D.I Yogyakarta
Potensi budidaya sarang burung walet di Propinsi D.I.Yogyakarta berada di Kabupaten Bantul dan Gunung Kidul.
Dikabupaten Bantul berada di Kecamatan Srandakan, Sanden, Pandak, Pajangan, Sedayu, Kretek, Bambanglipuro, Jetis, Bantul Piyungan. Sedangkan potensi yang berada di Kabupaten Gunung Kidul berada di Kecamatan Rangkap (desa Tepus), Kec.Paliyan (desa Kanigoro dan Ngerambil Sawit), Kec. Panggang (desa Girikerto dan Giripurwo).
Tata Niaga Sarang Burung Walet
Pada saat ini masih diperlukan upaya merata perdagangan sarang burung walet yang lebih transpara dan yang menjamin kelestariannya di alam. Oleh karena itu perlu segera dikoordinasikan pada tata niaganya pengumpul, Pemda Tk.II,Pemda Tk.I dan pihak-pihak Universitas.
April 19th, 2006
4to40.com
Updated on : 01/07/2005
A swallow builds its nest inside farm buildings and on ledges in old chimneys. The nest is made of mud, straw and saliva, with feathers and wool to line the inside. It takes a pair of swallows up to several weeks to make the saucer-shaped nest in the rafters of a barn. Swallows starts arriving in Europe at the end of March, a little earlier than their close relatives, the house martins. They spend the winter in South Africa and usually return to the same district - and even the same nest - where they settled before. The female lays four or five eggs, white with reddish-brown speckles. She sits on them for about 15 days before they hatch out. Both parents then feed the nestlings with insects which they catch while flying. Swallows usually lay two sets of eggs.
They leave for their winter quarters in September, gathering in large flocks and often perching on telephone wires, before setting off. The young birds of the first brood leave before their parents and, by an inborn knowledge, know which way to go.
An old country proverb says: One swallow does not make a summer. This means that when the first one or two swallows arrive, summer has not yet come. It is not until large flocks are seen that countrymen know they can expect the warmer weather.Category : AN
April 18th, 2006
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