The monsoon season has started. It rains every day. In some
states it never stopped. The lowland areas are flooded. Those Swiftlet farms
located in such areas are affected.
During this time humidity is at its highest. For those who
have experience in Swiftlet farming,
they would readjust the setting of the Humidifiers. Some would switch it
off totally. Anything above RH 95% would
affect the nests quality. Nests would turn yellowish and prolong expose to high RH some may turn
brownish.
Not only nests are affected, the whole micro (internal) as
well. Young chicks may die and eggs may not hatch and fatality is often high.
With such unfavorable internal environment, Swiftlet would search for a new home to build
nests.
A better internal environment would attract a large number
of birds. Therefore, it is important that you keep track of the movement of the
temperature and Humidity of your farms during the monsoon season.
This is where good farm management comes in. What is good
farm management? Good farm management is, a systematic and consistent in changing and
adjusting the gadgets that could influence the farm’s internal condition so
that it is suitable for birds to stay and build nests.
How many of us would do this? Often many would wait until
the monsoon over. Reason…nothing much one could do during this period.
(Yes, there are lots of things you could
do)
Lots of things could happen during this time. The biggest
fear is our birds leaving our farms
in search of a better farm (better internal environment)…"migrating"
There are many things you could do to reduce this effect
during the monsoon season. The major ones are:
1) Closing up some Ventilation holes. Prevent wet (moist)
air from outside entering the farm.
2) Readjusting the setting of the Humidifiers. Some areas
may need to switch off the humidifiers totally during this period.
3) Clean up the farm. Too thick of the birds dropping
increases humidity as it works as a wet sponge.
4) If the Swiftlet farms have small ponds or pails filled
with water, close them up with planks or asbestos board.
5) Switch off the water sprinkler.
So now you know having too many Ventilation holes is not a
good idea.
Anything above 95%
(RH) is not good, nests would turn yellowish.
Do remember after the monsoon is over you need to readjust
the setting again as the weather condition change. Obviously you need a
different setting for a hot season as the cycle goes on. For those who know
how to adapt and follow the changes would surely capture more birds than those
who did nothing.
Good Swiftlet farming All!
