By Glenn Nelson, Education Coordinator

 

While fishing or hiking along ponds or streams, park visitors are often startled by a rattling call and flitting flight.
 

{Belted Kingfisher} "What bird is this?"  It’s the belted kingfisher, found in all our regional parks along streams, rivers, ponds and lakes. During a fall walk or fishing trip, you may experience a sudden rattling call as a belted kingfisher takes off from its perch, and you may become a bit startled as the alarm call rattles off the water.  Watch for the flight flash of two or three strokes of its blue-gray wings, followed by a short glide and more wing pumps and glides.  Sometimes, the kingfisher dips so low, skimming along the water surface that its wing tips seem to brush the water.

THE BELTED KINGFISHER (Ceryle alcyon) belongs in the Alcedinidae family with several species in North America and 80 other species around the world. 

 

IDENTIFYING CHARACTERISTICS: The belted kingfisher's unusual characteristics reveals a very distinct look, especially the tiny feet and relatively large head.  The outsized head, designed for fishing, displays an uneven double-pointed crest with a sturdy, sharply pointed beak. The head sits upon a stocky body with a short tail.

Overall, the adults are 11 to 14 inches long with a white neck ring and breast, which stands out against the blue-gray body plumage.  Unlike most birds, the females are more brightly colored.  They have a belt of rusty feathers adorning their sides and breast that the males lack.

HABITAT: Belted kingfishers inhabit waterway areas where they catch fish near the surface or in shallow water.  These birds prefer open running water in streams or clear shallow water in ponds and lakes.  Due to their diet of fish and aquatic small creatures, they are vulnerable to the effects of water pollution. The pollution, as in acid mine drainage areas, can destroy their food pyramid. Lesser amounts of pollutants can cause eggshell thinning, reducing hatching success.

 

Observing belted kingfishers feed looks like a diving competition.  They hover above the water while scanning for fish. They hunt from perches, usually branches, but may use utility wires and bridge supports. They take whatever type of fish inhabits a given waterway by diving into the water, eyes closed, and grabbing prey with its beak.  After capture, the bird flies back to a perch where it whacks the fish until stunned and swallows it headfirst.   After feeding, it {Perched Kingfisher} coughs up a small pellet composed of bones and fish scales.  During high and/or turbid water, they may eat crayfish, mollusks, insects, amphibians, and even a small mammal or bird floating in the water.

 

NESTING:  Streams and riverbanks are preferred nesting sites.  Kingfishers nest in burrows that they dig into steep banks above streams. However, any bank of sufficient height and suitable digging material will do - and not necessarily right along the water.  Nests have been found a half-mile away in road and railroad cuts, sand and gravel pits, decaying trees, and even saw dust piles.  Most often the burrows are a few feet below the top of the stream bank, where topsoil gives way to sandier subsoil.  Both genders excavate the burrow with the male doing most of the work. It usually takes less than two weeks for a 3 - 6 foot long burrow to be built.  The opening is typically three or four inches in diameter with the tunnel sloping upward, ending in an unlined chamber. The female lays 5 to 8 white eggs on the chamber's dirt floor.  Both parents incubate the eggs, with the female getting the night shift.  The eggs hatch about 24 days later.

 

 

NATURAL HISTORY: During the fall, the chance of observing kingfishers will decrease as they migrate from mid-September until December.   Partial migrants stay and survive winter if streams stay unfrozen, but most kingfishers migrate following the open waterways to warmer climates and easier fishing.

Migrating kingfishers return to Chester County in March and April when the male establishes and defends a breeding territory - or good fishing spot.  During the courtship, the male feeds the female. Once the female is impressed and pairs up, she also defends the territory.  The defense of territory involves calling noisily, and flying at and attacking intruding kingfishers.

 

May is peak breeding time. Late spring and early summer is time for raising the hatchlings and fledging the young birds from the nest.  After hatching, the adults regurgitate fish to the young. As the hatchlings become bigger and stronger, the parents bring back whole fish, about one every 20 - 30 minutes.  The hatchlings use their chamber much like a cat's litter box.  After defecating, the young use their bills to peck or scratch at the chamber's walls so the dirt covers up their waste.  About four weeks after hatching, and with enticement from the parents holding fish in their bills as they sit on a nearby perch, the young leave the nest. By dropping insects in the water beneath the youngster's perch, parents teach their offspring to dive. Teaching offspring how to fish and feed is a three week process.

After the mating season and offspring fledge, pairs breakup and the young are on their own.  Individual birds settle on and defend smaller territories until their time for migration. Naturally, life is not that easy.  Skunks, minks, raccoons and black rat snakes enjoy eggs and hatchlings if found in the nest.  Fledglings and adults escape hawks by diving into the water.

CREATURE WATCH: Listen - - you'll often hear these alert birds before seeing them. Late summer and early fall is a great time to observe belted kingfishers in our parks.  The best time to observe them feeding is in the morning, late afternoon and early evening right before sunset.  On the streams, watch the riffles, which are desired fishing spots.  On Chambers Lake and the ponds, kingfishers prefer sheltered coves and shallow water areas with cover. 

 

Will you spot a kingfisher during the Wonders of Waterfowl program on October 20th at Chambers Lake? Will this year’s count exceed the 14 species spotted last year?