i think not many singaporeans have seen baya weaver's nests in the wild but actually these beautifully weaved oval or conical-shaped nests suspended from trees are quite a common sight in waste lands and secondary forests in singapore. you can sometimes see as many as 10 nests on a single tree - as is the case in the above photograph.
if you are lucky, you can even see the tiny birds that weave these nests. the male baya weaver looks like a sparrow but has yellow feathers on its back. you can read more about this bird here. when the nests are abandoned, other birds or creatures may use them. (there was actually a baya weaver in the above photograph but it was hidden by the foliage.)
the nests are usually constructed by the male baya to attract the females. one male may build two or three partially completed nests; after succeeding in getting one to lay (eggs), he goes in search of other females to woo and get them to lay eggs in his other nests. this bird is polygamous.
because of the uniqueness of the nest, there seems to be a demand for it. some people believe that these elaborately woven pendulous nests are good luck objects. so, they get them and hang them in their garden or in the compound of their house.
at this farm in lim chu kang, the farm workers have collected quite a number of nests from the nearby waste land and they are selling them at $12 each. i have also seen this type of nests at ivy singh's bollywood farm.
i shall not divulge the whereabout of these nests in the wild, otherwise some people may try to look for the baya weaver to learn something from it. no, not to weave the nest but how to court two or three partners at one time!
