Giant swiftlet

Giant swiftlet
Conservation status
Near Threatened  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Clade:	Strisores
Order:	Apodiformes
Family:	Apodidae
Genus:	Hydrochous Brooke, 1970
Species:	H. gigas
Binomial name
Hydrochous gigas (Hartert, EJO & Butler, AL, 1901)
Synonyms
Hydrochrous gigas (Hartert, EJO & Butler, AL, 1901) [orthographic error]

The giant swiftlet (Hydrochous gigas), also known as the waterfall swift, is a species of bird in the swift family, Apodidae. It is the only member of the monotypic genus Hydrochous.[2] It is found in Malaysia, Sumatra and Java, where its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist montane forests and rivers. It is threatened by habitat loss.[1]

The giant swiftlet has the largest average wingspan of all the swiftlets, at 150 millimeters.[3] It is a fairly large swift that can grow to 16 cm in length. The female weighs 35 to 39 grams, and the male around 37 grams.[4] Unlike other swiftlets, it builds its nest on a flat horizontal surface instead of molding it against a vertical surface with saliva.[5]

It is not totally nocturnal but able to orientate visually in dim light.[6]

References

1. BirdLife International (2017). "Hydrochous gigas". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2017: e.T22686485A118858428. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-3.RLTS.T22686485A118858428.en. Retrieved 13 November 2021.
2. "ITIS Report: Hydrochous". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved 11 August 2014.
3. Somadikarta, Soekarja (October 1968). "The giant swiftlet, Collocalia gigas, Hartert and Butler" (PDF). Retrieved 9 June 2017.
4. "Waterfall Swift (Hydrochous gigas)". www.hbw.com. Retrieved 2017-06-09.
5. Lee, Patricia L.M.; Clayton, Dale H.; Griffiths, Richard; Page, Roderic D.M. (1996-07-09). "Does behavior reflect phylogeny in swiftlets (Aves: Apodidae)? A test using cytochrome b mitochondrial DNA sequences". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. 93 (14): 7091–7096. Bibcode:1996PNAS...93.7091L. doi:10.1073/pnas.93.14.7091. ISSN 0027-8424. PMC 38941. PMID 8692950.
6. Medway, Lord; Wells, D. R. (1969-10-01). "Dark Orientation by the Giant Swiftlet Collocalia Gigas". Ibis. 111 (4): 609–611. doi:10.1111/j.1474-919X.1969.tb02570.x. ISSN 1474-919X.