Belted Kingfishers (Megaceryle alcyon) are brightly colored birds with long beaks; and are mostly a powdery blue-gray color. They are one of the very few species where the female is more colorful than the male, as the females have a blue and chestnut band across the white feathered breast while males will only be found with a blue band. The American Birding Association revealed the Belted Kingfisher as 2023 bird of the year! These birds are native to North America and can be found in parts of South America. Their call is a loud, penetrating rattle that you have probably heard before!
Belted Kingfishers will mostly be found nesting near bodies of water. They will hunt in unclouded streams, rivers, ponds, lakes, estuaries or calm marine waters that will allow them to see their prey below the surface. These birds will prey on fish including sticklebacks, mummichogs, trout, stonerollers, crayfish as well as crustaceans and mollusks. Their diet is not limited to fish, as they will also prey on insects, reptiles, young birds, small mammals, and even some types of berries. Kingfishers have an interesting way of hunting, they will sit on branches, telephone wires, or any other elevated structure and wait for their prey to come towards the surface of the water. They will then fly in an upward motion until they are directly over their targeted prey and dive, with their eyes closed. Once their prey has been brought to the nest, they will strike it against the perch then swallow it whole head first! When these birds are still nestlings they have the ability to digest bones and scales however as they grow up they begin to regurgitate the bones and scales in pellets.
Cool Facts: Fossils of the Belted Kingfisher have been found dating back almost 2 million years! Kingfishers are not very good at housekeeping, as they don’t always remove all of their coughed up pellets which will pile up after a while. The pellets aren’t just left for decoration, instead they are used to help insulate and protect their eggs. Once the nestlings hatch they need to be fed an average of eight fish a day, which is provided by the female while the male stays at the nest to protects the nestlings.
by Meghan Bukowski, Intern