Kingfisher

Kingfishers are a diverse family of birds known as Alcedinidae.

They belong to the order Coraciiformes, which includes other birds like bee-eaters and rollers. This family contains 118 different species. They have a cosmopolitan distribution, meaning they live in many parts of the world. Most species live in tropical regions across Africa, Asia, and Oceania. However, they can also be found in Europe and the Americas. They generally avoid polar regions and the world's driest deserts.

The physical traits of kingfishers are very distinct. They almost always have large heads and short legs. Their most famous feature is a long, sharp, pointed bill. These bills often look like daggers. The shape of the bill usually matches what the bird eats. Fish-eating species have longer, more compressed bills. Birds that hunt on the ground have shorter, broader bills. The shovel-billed kookaburra is an exception, using a massive bill to dig through forest floors.

Kingfishers are skilled hunters with specialized tools. They use excellent binocular vision to judge depth and see color clearly. Because their eyes do not move much in their sockets, they move their entire heads to track prey. When hunting underwater, they can compensate for light reflection and water refraction. They even have nictitating membranes, which are clear inner eyelids, to protect their eyes from water. Most kingfishers hunt by sitting on an exposed perch. When they spot prey, they swoop down to snatch it. Many species will then beat their prey against a perch to break bones or spines before swallowing.

The bright colors of kingfishers are a marvel of physics. Most species have bright plumage, with green and blue being the most common. This brightness does not come from pigments or iridescence in most cases. Instead, it is caused by the Tyndall effect. This happens when the physical structure of the feathers scatters blue light. While most species have very little difference between males and females, some show sexual dimorphism. In those cases, the differences in size are usually quite small.

The history of the kingfisher is tied to ancient stories and scientific discovery. The family name Alcedinidae was introduced by Constantine Samuel Rafinesque in 1815. The name itself comes from Greek mythology. The Greeks believed these birds could calm the sea while nesting. They called them "halkyons," meaning "born from the sea." This was linked to the myth of Alcyone and Ceyx. Scientifically, the family is divided into three subfamilies. These are the Halcyoninae (tree kingfishers), Alcedininae (river kingfishers), and Cerylinae (water kingfishers).

Kingfishers live in many different environments. While many people associate them with rivers, over half of all species live in forests. Some, like the red-backed kingfisher, can even live in dry deserts. They are also found in mountains, woodlands, and coral atolls. Many species have adapted to live near humans in parks and gardens. Some species are very rare and live only on specific islands. For example, the Kofiau paradise kingfisher lives only on the island of Kofiau near New Guinea.

Nesting is a communal and difficult task for these birds. Most kingfishers are cavity nesters, meaning they live in holes. Many species dig long tunnels into the banks of rivers or ditches. Some forest species even build nests inside the mounds of termites. Both parents help with the digging, which can be dangerous. Some birds have even died from the force of flying into a nesting site. Inside these tunnels, they lay white eggs. The typical clutch size is between three and six eggs, though some species lay as few as two or as many as ten. Both parents take turns sitting on the eggs to keep them warm. The young birds usually stay with their parents for three to four months.