Edible Nest Swiftlet

This is a set of pictures related to the Edible Nest Swiftlet in the Andaman & Nicobar Islands. This was a bird that the late Dr. Ravi Sankaran of SACON had worked on extensively. He was also attempting a new kind of effort to ensure the conservation of the bird whose nest is extremely highly valued in the international market. He unfortunately passed away earlier this year after suffering a massive heart attack.

For some of my writings on Ravi and his work on the edible nest swiftlet conservation program you can check the following links:
http://pankaj-atcrossroads.blogspot.com/2009/11/on-edible-nest-swiftlet.html
http://pankaj-atcrossroads.blogspot.com/2009/03/blog-post.html
http://pankaj-atcrossroads.blogspot.com/2009/02/protected-area-update-vol-xv-no-1.html

Challis Ek, Limestone caves, North Andaman Island. (July 2002)
Many cave complexes like these in the A&N islands are the nesting sites of the Edible Nest Swiftlet.

Nest of Edible Nest Swiftlet in the hand of a nest collector, Jarawa Creek, Baratang Island (1998)

Ravi with his project staff on the field site of Challis Ek, (2002)

A&N Landscapes 2

Limestone caves, North Andaman Island, July 2002.
Caves like these are used by Edible Nest Swiftlets for nesting. For more details on the conservation issues of the swiftlet and the work of the late Dr. Ravi Sankaran for their protection please visit
http://pankaj-atcrossroads.blogspot.com/2009/11/on-edible-nest-swiftlet.html

A view from the air: The water body is the reservoir of the Dhanikhari dam which is the main source of water for the town of Port Blair, June 2007

Great Nicobar Coast, February 2005