White-throated kingfisher facts for kids
Quick facts for kids White-throated kingfisher |
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| H. s. fusca (Sri Lanka) | |
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Halcyon
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| Species: |
smyrnensis
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| distribution (includes gularis) | |
| Synonyms | |
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Alcedo smyrnensis Linnaeus, 1758 |
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The white-throated kingfisher (Halcyon smyrnensis) is also called the white-breasted kingfisher. This bird is a type of tree kingfisher and lives across a huge part of Asia. You can find it from the Sinai all the way east through India and China to Indonesia.
Most white-throated kingfishers stay in one place year-round. However, some groups might move short distances. You can often spot them far from water, as they eat many different things. Their diet includes small reptiles, amphibians, crabs, tiny rodents, and even other birds. During the time they raise their young, they sing loudly in the mornings. They often perch on high spots like building tops in cities or on power lines.
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How This Bird Got Its Name
The white-throated kingfisher was first officially described by a Swedish scientist named Carl Linnaeus in 1758. He wrote about it in his famous book, Systema Naturae. He gave it the scientific name Alcedo smyrnensis.
Later, in 1821, an English scientist named William Swainson created the group (genus) Halcyon for this bird. The name Halcyon comes from an old Greek story about a bird, often thought to be a kingfisher. The second part of its name, smyrnensis, refers to the city of Smyrna (which is now İzmir in Turkey).
Scientists recognize five main types, or subspecies, of this kingfisher:
- H. s. smyrnensis: Found from southern Turkey to northern Egypt, Iraq, and northwest India.
- H. s. fusca: Lives in western India and Sri Lanka.
- H. s. perpulchra: Found from Bhutan to eastern India, Indochina, the Malay Peninsula, and western Java.
- H. s. saturatior: Lives in the Andaman Islands.
- H. s. fokiensis: Found in southern and eastern China, Taiwan, and Hainan.
The brown-breasted kingfisher (H. gularis) from the Philippines is now usually seen as its own separate species. This was confirmed by a study in 2017. It showed that H. s. gularis is actually more closely related to the Javan kingfisher than to the white-throated kingfisher.
People in different places have many names for this bird. Some local names include kilkila in Hindi, sandabuk machhranga in Bengali, and ponman in Malayalam.
What Does It Look Like?
This is a large kingfisher, growing to about 27 to 28 centimeters (around 11 inches) long. The adult bird has a bright blue back, wings, and tail. Its head, shoulders, sides, and lower belly are a rich chestnut color. Its throat and chest are white. The bird has a big, bright red beak and red legs.
When the white-throated kingfisher flies, it moves fast and straight. Its short, rounded wings whir quickly. If you see it flying, you'll notice large white patches on its blue and black wings. Male and female kingfishers look very similar. Young birds are just a bit duller in color than the adults.
Different types of this bird can vary slightly in size and the shade of blue on their backs. Some are more greenish-blue, while others are more purplish-blue.
Where Does It Live?
The white-throated kingfisher is a very common bird. It lives in many different places, mostly open areas in flat lands. These places usually have trees, wires, or other spots where the bird can perch. You can even find them high up in the Himalayas, at about 7,500 feet! This bird's home range is actually getting bigger.
This kingfisher is found in many areas, and its numbers are not in danger. For example, in the Sundarbans mangroves, there are about 4 to 5 kingfishers per square kilometer.
Behaviour and Ecology
How They Reproduce
White-throated kingfishers start to have their young when the Monsoon rains begin. The male birds will sit on tall, noticeable spots in their area and call out early in the morning. They might flick their tail. During their courtship dance, they stiffly open their wings for a moment or two to show off the white patches. They also raise their beak high to show their white throat and chest. The female, to show she's interested, makes a quick and long kit-kit-kit... sound.
Their nest is a tunnel dug into an earth bank. These tunnels are usually about 50 centimeters (about 20 inches) long, but some have been seen as long as 3 feet! Both birds start building the nest by flying into a suitable mud wall until they make a small dent where they can hold on. Then, they perch and keep digging the nest with their strong beaks. Sometimes, they even dig nests in haystacks!
A female kingfisher usually lays one set of 4 to 7 round, white eggs. The eggs hatch in about 20 to 22 days. The young birds are ready to fly out of the nest after about 19 days.
What Do They Eat?
This kingfisher often sits on wires or other open perches in its area, making it a common sight in South Asia. It mainly hunts large crustaceans like crabs, insects, earthworms, rodents, lizards, snakes, fish, and frogs. There have been reports of them eating small birds too, like the Indian white-eye or young red-wattled lapwings, sparrows, and munias. Young kingfishers mostly eat insects and other small creatures without backbones. Interestingly, kingfishers kept in zoos rarely drink water, even though they bathe often.
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breaking the fish's spine
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repositioned in beak
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released and moved through 90 degrees.
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swallowing head first
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Moving Around
Sometimes, these birds are drawn to lights at night, especially during the monsoon season. This suggests that some of them might travel short distances.
Dangers and Survival
With their powerful beaks and fast flight, healthy white-throated kingfishers have few natural enemies. Very rarely, a black kite or a jungle crow might catch one, but these are usually sick or hurt birds. One kingfisher was found dead with its beak stuck in a tree. This might have been an accident while it was chasing prey very quickly, perhaps an Indian white-eye.
In the 1800s, people used to hunt these birds for their bright feathers to decorate hats. Today, the white-throated kingfisher is the official State bird of West Bengal in India.
