Simple but Hard

I was attracted to Swifjames article on It is Dam Simple The Truth It is Dam Hard. This is really true and he seems to be a wise swiftlet farmer. My wife's family farm which is almost 1 year and 9 months old and the pioneer farm in Tirok has about slightly more than 100 nests, a figure which many swiftlet successful farmers would think is not encouraging. But I would like to tell my readers that this not so. In my area in Tirok and the surrounding areas, there are now more than 10 standalone farms. I have checked with other owners and found that the result is almost similar, in fact less encouraging than mine. Most of the farms have not reached the 50 nests mark yet. This area is in the swiftlets flight path and they prefer to go home to KT town to roast.

To those who look down on my farm (I know of one boostful guy in the net) I challenge them to come and build one in Tirok. I can look for land in Tirok, whether they want to JV with the land owner or to buy them I can arrange.

There is a birdhouse which is already 4 storey high and is currently renovating to 5 storey. Though I haven't check with the owner, I guessed the result is not very encouraging and he added an additional floor solely to make the building higher, to be above all the tall trees to attract the swiftlets flying over. There are no other reasons for him to add another floor as the birdhouse is already huge, and when full, as the Hockkiens say, "ciak beh liao". This owner had owned a few birdhouses in town and this is his 1st. standalone. It is already hard building above shophouses in town and it is more difficult building standalone far away from the walet central.

I have passed through many standalone farms in KT, mostly in the outskirts, in the evening and did not see any activities. These could be among the 80% failed farms. You need knowledge and intelligence to be successful. Preserverance is not enough.

To quote James,

"One thing most Swiftlet farmers must need to know is that Swiftlet farming looks dam easy to do and the truth is dam hard to be done which most have to swallow.Commonly most would think that just get a building , close all the windows , open a hole, install some planks, fix the sound system that's about it and wait for the money to pour in."

Good External Sound Attracts Swiftlets Into Birdhouse

Today, I took the opportunity to visit my other birdhouse to replace the external sound. It is not really a new sound because this sound is already being used in this birdhouse but had been combined with other sound tracks in one pen drive. I was at this birdhouse last Friday afternoon observing the swiftlets. A friend standing beside me pointed out that the swiftlets were attracted to only a particular sound track and would respond by coming down close to the birdhouse, circling the hexagonal tweeter to the extent of kissing them and then diving into the entrance holes, the big one facing the river and smaller one facing the return flight path. I decided to pay attention to this particular sound track and when I went home that night I immediately went through my sound collections. I noticed it is the one which I downloaded from one of the swiftlet blog site. I am not going to reveal which blog but if you are one of the diehard swiftlet farmer who reads all the swiftlet blogs you will be able to locate this external sound. It is so good and is FOC. Thanks to this blogger for sharing. Such a good sound would have cost at least RM300, the minimum. I downloaded this sound into my pen drive and kept it until today before activating it. The video below shows that the sound really do wonders. How long the atraction will last?. Lets wait and see. I hope it last forever if that is the response you see in the video. I will keep on monitoring.

Sarawak's Bird Nest Industry Still In Dilemma

By Syed Azwan Syed Ali

KUALA LUMPUR, May 22 (Bernama) -- Probably not many are aware that Malaysia's bird nest industry has grown to RM1 billion per annum in its value following the large scale migration of the edible nest swiftlet from Indonesia about 10 years ago.

The figure is expected to increase due to the steady demand from China where the bird nest soup is a popular delicacy especially among the well heeled segment of the society.

Malaysia is the world's third biggest producer of bird's nest after Indonesia and Thailand with an average of 12 tonnes of nests produced monthly.

The nests made by the edible-nest swiftlet (aerodramus fuciphagus) and the black-nest swiftlet (aerodramus maximus) in Malaysia is said to be of better quality.

LICENSING ISSUES RETARDING THE INDUSTRY

Nevertheless, of late there has been some concerns over the licensing problems of more than 1,500 swiftlet farms in Sarawak that could retard the industry.

In Peninsular Malaysia, swiftlet farms are allowed to be set up within shop houses and commercial lots in towns according to conditions set, but such setups are not allowed within towns in Sarawak.

This is because the Sarawak's Wild Life Protection Ordinance 1998 does not allow swiftlet farming within towns. At the same time, the state has no guidelines to allow swiftlet farming in towns unlike in Peninsular Malaysia.

Furthermore the Wildlife Protection Rules (Edible Bird Nests) 1998 and Wildlife Protection Rules 1998 expounds that the species can only be bred in agricultural areas in outskirts other that its original habitat like caves.

"By right, the state government should support the industry and liaise with the federal government by having a uniform guideline in swiftlet farming," said Koh Ung Leong to Bernama when met in Sibu recently.

The veterinarian said as the edible-nest swiftlet has high economic value, the industry helps to boost local real estate value and serves as a viable alternative to farmers and fishermen.

A survey conducted by Bernama found that many swiftlet farms have been set up in special structures and altered shophouses in towns along the coast line in Mukah, Sibu, Sarikei and Bintulu.

The state's edible-nest swiftlet merchants association earlier had sought the intervention of Chief Minister Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud to find a solution for the dilemma following strict enforcement in Mukah since last October.

THE CURRENT STATUS

Currently there is more than 1,500 swiftlet farms but only two have been licensed by the authorities. This means 99.8 percent of the swiftlet farms in the state is illegal.

"We hope the state government will prepare a guideline similar to the one in Peninsula. We will fully cooperate with the state to solve this issue," said the pro-tem chairman of the Sarikei edible-nest swiftlet merchants association, Wong Hua Ting.

On this issue, the state government has two choices whether to centralise swiftlet farming in a particular location by setting up an eco-park or adapt a specific guideline on swiftlet farming.

"It is impossible to transfer these birds. The swiftlet is not like chicken or duck to be caught and transferred. These birds have made their bird houses as the nest," said the chairman of the federation of Malaysian edible-nest swiftlet merchants association Datuk Beh Heng Seong.

At present, it is still not clear whether the swiftlets can be transferred moreover it is a species protected under the Wildlife Act 1972. As there are risks of the birds dying during transfer, especially the chicks, it is almost impossible to transfer them.

The question remains how the state government especially the Sarawak Forestry Department (SFD) and the Sarawak Forestry Corporation (SFC) will handle the issue without leaving anyone in the losing end including the owners of the swiftlet farms.

THE STAND TAKEN ON THE ISSUE

The Director General of SFD who is also Chief Executive of the SFC Datuk Len Talif Salleh stressed that the industry should be developed systematically based on the existing laws.

"Many of those seeking license are in towns which by the definition of the law they do not qualify," said Len Talif adding that the risks of epidemics like bird flu being the reason why the state government does not want to allow swiftlet farming in towns.

There were also complaints from the public on the stench from the bird droppings and the din from the speaker to entice the swiftlets to nest in the farms.

Len Talif also claimed that the setting up of swiftlet farms within towns disrupts business for some especially those in the food business or having stalls near the farms.

"There should not be guideline to setup the birdhouse in town. This contravenes the law," he said adding that the state government will build an eco-park and provide licenses for individuals keen in setting up the swiftlet farms on agricultural land in the rural areas.

BUREAUCRACY HURDLES

Many of the swiftlet farm owners see red over the bureaucracy involving the Land and Survey Department, Sarawak Planning Authority (SPA), SFC and the local government as the red tape is a serious impediment in getting a license for swiftlet farming.

Furthermore as there is no guarantee that the birds will nest in the proposed eco-park, that is why they want the state government to adopt the Veterinary Services Department's Best Practices in Animal Breeding (GAHP) for the swiftlet farming.

GAHP, which is among the conditions for licensing in Peninsula, has set certain specifications to ensure the swiftlet farms are set up in a conducive and environmentally friendly environment, which among others the noises from the speakers should not exceed 40 decibels and the speaker cone set facing the sky in a 60 degree angle to overcome noise pollution.

"We talk about "1Malaysia" which means the same law for everyone. Why then the state government does not want to accept this guideline," said a bird nest trader from Mukah, John Low.

He was referring to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak's statement encouraging the people especially the Bumiputeras to venture into swiftlet farming that can boost the local economy.

The Mukah edible-nest swiftlet merchants association protem chairman, Philip Tiong, wanted the authorities to hold a dialog with swiftlet farm owners to find a solution for the dilemma and any `one way dialog' ordering them to shift out should never be the option.

CLAIMS OF MONOPOLY

Nonetheless, several swiftlet farm owners claimed that the setting up of the eco-park including in Mukah is the work of some to monopolise the industry.

This is because a kilogramme of the bird's nest can fetch RM4,000 and the figure doubles after the nests are processed for export to China, Hong Kong and Korea.

If the Mukah district can produce 100 kilogrammes of bird nest valued at RM400,000 monthly, just imagine the amount of revenue that can be generated by 40,000 swiftlet farms all over the country.

Though the allegations of monopoly is yet to be proven, the authorities should attend immediately to the current impasse that can derail the government's plan to develop the bird nest industry.

Meanwhile, head of the swiftlet unit of the Veterinary Services Department Dr Fadzilah A'ini Abdul Kadir noted that the department, which is the leading agency in monitoring the swiftlet industry, is keeping track on the developments in the industry.

Since the last three years, more than 5,000 samples of the swiftlet have been tested by the department and so far they have been free from bird flu and Newcastle disease, said Dr Fadzilah.

Roving Room Roof Fully Completed

My roving room roof had finally been completed. All the plastering are in place. Plastering cannnot be done in one shot. The cement plaster have to stick to the chicken wire mesh first. The workers have to dab the cement plaster to the chicken wire and wait for the cement to set before continuing on the second dab and subsequent plastering.

Plastering work in progress - Back View

Plastering in progress - Frront View

As solid as a rock after plastering

Plastering completed - Back view

Plastering completed - Front View

Completed roof seen from a distance

Close-up of the completed roof

Harvesting Time

Well, this is not on this farm. I did the harvesting on the other farm belonging to my wife's family. A day before the harvesting I went into the farm and saw many of the nests had been abandoned, especially on the ground floor, meaning that, the young swiftlets had flew off. Not to miss the opportunity to do harvesting and encouraged by others who had said that by harvesting irrespective of the numbers in the farm, the swiftlets will come back to build more nests, I came back the next date. I noticed a few nests have already been filled with eggs. I gave those nests a miss while I harvested the nests which are empty.

My harvest for the day. Enough for own consumpttion

A normal cup shaped 3 fingers nest

A freak nest. 4 inches long

Corner nests. Looks like a pair of bikini top. The nests are
yellowish because have been in the farm for quite sometime
and have been host to a few pair of swiftlets already

View before harvesting

View after harvesting. One nest is left behind

because there are eggs in it

View of another location before harvesting

View after harvesting

Unique fruit discovered on site

I went up to the roof top yesterday with a friend. This friend is a Sifu in swiftlet farming having constructed many successful swiftlet farms for the owners in the state. The moment he stepped foot on the roof top, he immediately turn his attention to a tall tree facing the the entrance hole and told me not to disturb this tree. He said this tree will attract a lot of insects during the fruit season. All this while I just acknowledged this tree as one of the trees around my birdhouse but this time it really caught my attention. This tree is quite unique that its fruits point towards the sky. Only then did I realised that this fruit is almost similar to the one that I am looking for.

I have to admit that this is the first time that I saw this fruit in Terengganu soil. The fruit that I am looking for is called the miricle fruit by XKL because it can cure all sort of illness. It is also called fruit or 'buah tunjuk langit' as the Malays called it. The fruits are from the mahogany tree. I have been buying the dried fruits and processed it into capsules and consuming it for the past 6 months taking 2 capsules daily. I have been having hypertension since my youth and my blood pressure has always ding dong around the borderline of140/90 even after medication but since taking this fruit my bllod pressure has turned normal. I took my blood pressure yesterday using the OMRON digital blood pressure monitor and the result after 3 readings averaged 120/81. Just fantastic. There are a lot of testimonies on the efficacy of this fruit in the net.

Today, I went up the roof again to make sure if the fruit is sky fruit or another type of fruit. Looking at the fruits again and paying more attention, I saw that the texture is a bit different from sky fruit. I tried to ask one of the workers doing plastering on the roof top and he seems to know the fruit. He told me the fruit is called 'Diah' and when ripe will drop down. They are edible and usually the fruits are collected and fried before eating. The texture of this fruit resembles the nangka or cempedak. I went back to my office, still not convince on my discovery and I asked one of my collegue who is from Besut who use to live in a kampung. I described to him the characteristics of the fruit and tree and he seems to recognise right away as there are a few trees in his kampung. He told me that this tree is a jungle tree and very tall and it bears fruits similar in size to a small cempedak. He told me the villagers called the fruit 'buah diah'. To counter check that this fruit and tree really exist by this name 'Diah", I did a search on the net typing the words 'buah diah' but I could not find them. It could have been known by another name and could have been very rare. Hope readers can enlighten me on this fruit and tree. I find the fruit unique because the fruits ponts upward instead of hanging down like the nangkas or cempedaks and also it looks similar to the sky fruit which I had described earlier as the miracle fruit. .

Do contact me if you would like to have a look at this fruit or tree. one of the few with its fruit upright and as unique as the swiftlets which fly non-stop and do not hang or stop on trees.

Below is a short write-up about the miracle fruit which i want to share with my readers.

Skyfruit - How Beneficial Is It To Human Body And Why It

Is Called The Miracle Fruit ?

In 1996, a renowned American biochemist Dr. Larry Brookes, whom during his research he encountered a major discovery, that is he found abundance resources of Flavonoids and Saponins to be the active ingredient of SkyFruit.

Active Ingredient of Sky Fruit:

Flavonoids (found in Citrus, Gingko, Tea and Red Wine)

• Able to promote a smooth blood circulation and to interfere with the formation of atherosclerotic plague.
• Lowers cholesterol levels and lowers fats build-up in the blood stream.
• Reduces the risk of coronary heart disease.
• Have an anti-inflammation action, it is able to inhibit body's natural enzymes that produce the chemical which park tissue inflammation.
• Ability in reducing pain, bleeding, bruising, and the fluid retention that result from tissue injuries.
• Act as anti-oxidant.
• Act as a free radical scavenger.

Saponins (found in Ginseng and has a bitter taste)

• As an agent in cancer prevention and reduces body fats.
• Enhances immune system and improves vitality.
• Reduces blood clotting and alleviates blood sugar.
• Enhances the functions of the heart and prolonging blood clotting process.

Isoflavoniods (found inPueraria Lobata)

• Anti-cancer Effects
• Prevention of Coronary Heart Disease.
• Prevention of Osteoporosis and Reducing Menopausal Symptons

In addition, the SkyFruit contains various natural proteins, minerals, vitamins, enzymes, carbohydrates, essential fatty acids and other body essential nutrients, where its easy absorption contributes an important factor for staying healthy.

In recent years, the SkyFruit has been widely accepted by medical specialists and doctors. Its consumers' testimonials have made its recognition of its core values to be one of the best health products among those available in the market. Not only is SkyFruit pure in nature, its basis of suitability to health makes it an excellent product. No ill side effect is encountered even for long term consumption.

Core Usage::

• Revitalize sex drive
• Revitalize energy
• Increase strength
• Rebuild tissues
• Increase pregnancy rate
• Supporting healthy energy
• Reactivate cells
• Beauty agent
• Anti-aging
• Strengthen stomach, heart, lungs, liver, spleen
• Replenish blood and strengthen arteries
• Regulate blood sugar
• Restore healthy heart and brain, etc.

Target User:

• Diabetes,hypertension,
• skin allergy,
• malaria,
• heart problem,
• asthmatic,
• menstruation pain,
• Alzheimer,
• first stage stroke,
• gastritis,
• rheumatic,
• impotency,
• poor appetite, poor health
• liver disease,
• sensitive skin, pimples and blisters,
• low immune system,
• inconceivable,
• foul breath,
• high cholesterol,
• constipation, digestive system problem,
• neuralgia,
• secretion disorder,
• tumour or growth,
• remove pimples and freckles,beautify skin and etc.

The 'Diah' tree in the background

The 'Diah' tree

Closer view of the 'Diah tree

Close-up of tree. Fruit can be seen clearly
pointing up like the sky fruit

Another close-up with fruits visible.

Sky fruit on Mahogany tree

Dried sky fruits

Dry seeds and processed seeds packed into capsules

Roving room roof ready to receive a coat of cement plaster

I have been busy this few days supervising my workers putting up the roof covering over the roof structure. It have been a tedious job having to work above the air well. In future, having to do it again I would rather do it on the ground and using a mobile crane to lift it up provided there are working space on the ground. The shape of the roof resemble a turtle. Perhaps this can overcome the nostalgia of the missing turtles at Rantau Abang and the turtle at the roundabout in Ladang. So, if you miss the turtles, welcome to The Hollow. I am waiting anxiously to see the cement being cast onto the top of the roof. I have taken quite a number of shots on the process of putting up the roof covering for the readers to see together with shots of the surrounding works in progress. I intend to turn the surrounding into a garden with ponds, fountains and fishes. This is my dream and I hope will become a reality soon and I hope the swiftlets will share my dream and help to produce more nests. Since the roving room have been covered up. I did a test on the temperature and humidity by placing a hygrothermometer on the 3rd Floor and the result shows 28 degree celcius for the temperature and 85% for the humidity. This is achieved without the internal drainage, the pools and the fountains.

View from the back. Aluminium foil on top of pvc sun-shading
mesh. The main intention is to keep the aluminium foil taut
and aslo unintentionally act as double heat protection

View from the front. Aluminium foil is placed
on top of pvc sun-shading mesh.

View from the back. Aluminium foil
and chicken wire mesh in place

View from the front. Aluminium foil and
chicken wire mesh in place

View of the top entrance. Actual entrance partly hidden

View of the bottom entrance. the swiftlet can choose
either way to enter. Top or bottom.

Entrance into roving room and air-well below. Wall to block light
from entering building. There will be a door in between the wall

Inside of roving room

Flower trough and pond in front of the entrance

Plastering of flower trough and pond wall in progress

A song of love for every boy and girl

Roof structure over roving room completed

At last, the steel roof structure over the roving room and air well has been completed. What is left is to cover up the roof structure. I intend to place a layer of pvc mesh over the roof structure followed by a layer of aluminium and then a layer of chicken wire mesh before a layer of cement plaster is laid on top of it.

At last, the steel roof structure over the roving room and air well has been completed. What is left is to cover up the roof structure. I intend to place a layer of pvc mesh over the roof structure followed by a layer of aluminium and then a layer of chicken wire mesh before a layer of cement plaster is laid on top of it.

Roof structure taking shape.

Roof structure completed. Front View

Roof structure completed. Back view

View of roving room roof from a distance