On The Trails: Kingfishers

[mouakter9005]

Kingfishers have captured the fancy of people for centuries. In Greek mythology, the gods caused a man to drown, leaving his lover, a woman named Halcyon, to grieve and wish to join him. One of the capricious gods took mercy on her, transforming her and her lover into kingfishers. The ancient myths proclaimed that kingfishers nested at sea in midwinter and briefly calmed the turbulent ocean waters while they nested.

Eventually, observation and common sense prevailed, and kingfishers became recognized simply as very interesting birds (without the mythical powers). But we retain the term “Halcyon days,” named after the mythical grieving woman, referring to periods of sun between storms and glorious tranquility in the midst of turmoil.

There are over a hundred species of kingfisher currently country wise email marketing list classified in one taxonomic family, although some taxonomists would prefer to split this group into three separate families. They are widely distributed around the world, especially in the Old World tropics and subtropics. The Americas have only six species; the U.S. has the belted kingfisher, whose nesting range includes much of North America, plus two more that range into the southwest from Mexico.

A laughing kookaburra making a hollow for a nest in an arboreal termite nest. (Photo by Cabrils / CC BY-SA 4.0)
A laughing kookaburra making a hollow for a nest in an arboreal termite nest. (Photo by Cabrils / CC BY-SA 4.0)

They share some morphological features, including relatively large heads and long, strong, sharp bills. But they are a varied lot! They range in size from “dwarf” to “giant” (both of Africa); the dwarf kingfisher is about 10 centimeters long and weighs less than 12 grams; the giant kingfisher is over 40 centimeters long and can weigh up to something over 400 grams. Our belted kingfisher lies in the middle of that range, averaging roughly 150 grams.