The Apodidae, or swifts, form a family of highly aerial birds. They are superficially similar to swallows, but are not closely related to any passerine species. Swifts are placed in the order Apodiformes along with hummingbirds. The treeswifts are closely related to the true swifts, but form a separate family, the Hemiprocnidae.
The Phi Phi Islands are an island group in Thailand between the large island of Phuket and the Straits of Malacca coast of Thailand. The islands are administratively part of Krabi Province. Ko Phi Phi Don is the largest and most populated island of the group, although the beaches of the second largest island, Ko Phi Phi Le are visited by many people as well. The rest of the islands in the group, including Bida Nok, Bida Nai, and Ko Mai Phai, are not much more than large limestone rocks jutting out of the sea. The islands are reachable by ferries, speedboats or long-tail boats, most often from Krabi town or from ports in Phuket Province.
Swiftlets are birds from the four genera Aerodramus, Collocalia, Hydrochous and Schoutedenapus, which form the tribe Collocaliini within the swift family Apodidae. The group contains around thirty species mostly confined to southern Asia, south Pacific islands, and northeastern Australia, all within the tropical and subtropical regions. They are in many respects typical members of the Apodidae, having narrow wings for fast flight, with a wide gape and small reduced beak surrounded by bristles for catching insects in flight. What distinguishes many but not all species from other swifts and indeed almost all other birds is their ability to use a simple but effective form of echolocation to navigate in total darkness through the chasms and shafts of the caves where they roost at night and breed.
Aerodramus is a genus of small, dark, cave-nesting birds in the Collocaliini tribe of the swift family. Its members are confined to tropical and subtropical regions in southern Asia, Oceania and northeastern Australia. Many of its members were formerly classified in Collocalia, but were first placed in a separate genus by American ornithologist Harry Church Oberholser in 1906.
Sitiawan (alternate spelling: Setiawan; origin: from Malay, a portmanteau of SetiaKawan, meaning "Loyal Friend") is a mukim and town in Manjung District, Perak, Malaysia.
Great Nicobar is the southernmost and largest of the Nicobar Islands of India, north of Sumatra. It is part of India, in the Nicobar district within the union territory of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
The Baling District is an administrative district in southeastern Kedah, Malaysia. Located about 110 km from Alor Setar, it borders Perak and Betong, the southernmost town of Thailand.
The Manjung District, formerly known as Dindings, is a district in the south-western part of the state of Perak, Malaysia. It is the 26th-most populated district in Malaysia. It is administered by the Manjung Municipal Council, formerly known as Manjung District Council from 1 January 1980 until 31 July 2001. The district is well known for Pangkor Island, an attraction in Perak and the home of the Royal Malaysian Navy (TLDM), Lumut Naval Base and dockyard. Dinding was once part of the British Straits Settlements colony. Seri Manjung is the district's principal urban centre while smaller towns include Lumut town, Sitiawan town, Ayer Tawar, Pantai Remis, Changkat Keruning and Beruas.
The West Coast Expressway (E32), abbreviated WCE, is an interstate controlled-access highway running along the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia. The 233-kilometre (145-mile) expressway is currently under construction, with several sections open for public use. Once completed, the expressway will run between Changkat Jering, Perak and Banting, Selangor, following federal routes 5 and 60 for most of its route. The expressway will operate in three sections, with sections of federal route 5 completing the missing connections; these sections will be upgraded to limited-access roads. The expressway is expected to be fully completed by the end of 2025, except for a 10 km stretch from Section 7B which is expected to be completed by June 2026.
Ayer Keroh is a town situated in Melaka Tengah District, Malacca, Malaysia. It is the seat of the state government since 2006, being the home of the state secretariat building complex – Seri Negeri complex and one of a few towns which formed the Hang Tuah Jaya municipality.
Pantai Remis is a coastal town in Manjung District, Perak, Malaysia. It is situated in between Simpang and Sitiawan.
Bachok District is an administrative division of Kelantan, Malaysia. It is located approximately 25 km east of Kota Bharu.
Pak Phanang is a district (amphoe) of Nakhon Si Thammarat province, southern Thailand.
The edible-nest swiftlet, also known as the white-nest swiftlet, is a small bird of the swift family which is found in Southeast Asia. Its opaque and whitish bird nest is made exclusively of solidified saliva and is the main ingredient of bird's nest soup, a delicacy of Chinese cuisine. Germain's swiftlet is now treated as conspecific with this species.
The Kuala Selangor Nature Park is a park located by the mouth of the Selangor River in Kuala Selangor District, Selangor, Malaysia. It was established by the Selangor state government in 1987 and has been managed by the Malaysian Nature Society which has proposed that it be declared a wetland of international importance.
Ao Phang Nga National Park, located in the Phang Nga Province of the Southern Thailand, encompasses parts of Mueang Phang Nga District and Takua Thung District. The park is predominantly maritime, featuring a section of the Strait of Malacca dotted with numerous limestone tower karst islands. Among these islands, Khao Phing Kan stands out as particularly well-known, having gained the nickname 'James Bond Island' due to its use as a filming location for the James Bond film The Man with the Golden Gun.
David Nga Kor Ming is a Malaysian politician and lawyer who has served as the Minister of Housing and Local Government in the Unity Government administration under Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim since December 2022. He served as Deputy Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat under former Speaker Mohamad Ariff Md Yusof from July 2018 to his resignation in July 2020. He was also a member of the Perak State Executive Council (EXCO) in the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) state administration under former Menteri Besar Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin from March 2008 to the collapse of the administration in February 2009. He has also served as the Member of Parliament for Teluk Intan since May 2018 and for Taiping from March 2008 to May 2018. He has been a Member of the Perak State Legislative Assembly for Kepayang from May 2013 to May 2018, and again since November 2022, for Aulong from May 2018 to November 2022, and for Pantai Remis from November 1999 to March 2013. He is a member of the Democratic Action Party (DAP), a component party of the PH coalition. He has also served as National Vice Chairman and 3rd Parliamentary Leader of DAP since March 2022, and State Chairman of DAP of Perak. He served as Deputy Secretary-General of DAP from November 2017 to March 2022.
Edible bird's nests, also known as swallow nests, are bird nests created from solidified saliva by edible-nest swiftlets, Indian swiftlets and other swiftlets of the genera Aerodramus, Hydrochous, Schoutedenapus and Collocalia, which are harvested for human consumption.
Ong Seok Kim was an educationist, social worker, philanthropist and entrepreneur. He was born in Yongchun County, Southern Fujian Province in China and migrated to the then Malaya in 1903. As an entrepreneur, Ong began building up his wealth through trading in supplies for tin miners in the Ipoh/Gopeng area in the state of Perak, and later as a local trader in Sitiawan, Manjung District, also in Perak. He continued building his wealth through establishing retail shops, and later through investment in rubber estates and commercial properties in Manjung District and as far as Betong in Thailand. The wealth he created would later be used towards various charity and education projects in Manjung District, and in particular, Sitiawan town.
Mah Hang Soon is a Malaysian politician who served as Deputy Minister of Education I for the second term in the Barisan Nasional (BN) administration under former Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob and former Minister Radzi Jidin from August 2021 to the collapse of the BN administration in November 2022 and the first term in the Perikatan Nasional (PN) administration under former Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin and former Minister Radzi from March 2020 to the collapse of PN administration in August 2021, Senator from March 2020 to his resignation in November 2022 as well as Member of the Perak State Legislative Assembly (MLA) for Chenderiang from March 2008 to May 2018. He is a member of the Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA), a component party of the BN coalition. He has served as the Deputy President of MCA since November 2018.
