21-572: Lacedo Pelargopsis Halcyon Cittura Tanysiptera Melidora Dacelo Actenoides Syma Todiramphus The tree kingfishers , also called wood kingfishers or Halcyoninae , are the most numerous of the three subfamilies of birds in the kingfisher family, with around 70 species divided into 12 genera , including several species of kookaburras . The subfamily appears to have arisen in Indochina and Maritime Southeast Asia and then spread to many areas around
42-410: A duller version of the adult and show streaks on the throat. The call of this kingfisher is a cackling ki-ki-ki-ki-ki . Usually seen on coastal waters and especially in mangroves, it is easily disturbed. It perches conspicuously and dives to catch fish, and also feeds on large insects. The flight of the black-capped kingfisher is rapid and direct, the short rounded wings whirring. The breeding season
63-519: A huge conical bill, and the Tanysiptera paradise kingfishers have long tail streamers. Some species, notably the kookaburras , show sexual dimorphism . Most tree kingfishers are found in the warm climates of Africa, southern and southeast Asia, and Australasia. No members of this family are found in the Americas. The origin of the family is thought to have been in tropical Australasia, which still has
84-642: A scientific name, but in 1783 the Dutch naturalist Pieter Boddaert coined the binomial name Alcedo pileata in his catalogue of the Planches Enluminées . The type locality is China. The present genus Halcyon was introduced by the English naturalist and artist William John Swainson in 1821. Halcyon is a name for a bird in Greek mythology generally associated with the kingfisher . The specific epithet pileata
105-469: Is Latin for "very pretty". There are three subspecies: The banded kingfisher is a 20 cm (7.9 in) long with a sturdy red bill and a short crest which is slowly raised and lowered. It shows striking sexual dimorphism compared to most of its relatives. The adult male has a chestnut forehead, cheeks and nape, and a bright blue cap. The rest of the upperparts, wings and tail are black with blue bands. The breast, flanks and undertail are rufous, and
126-538: Is a tree hole, either natural, and old woodpecker nest, or excavated in soft or rotting wood by the kingfishers. Several species dig holes in termite nests. No nest material is added, although litter may build up over the years. Both parents incubate the eggs and feed the chicks. Egg laying is staggered at one-day intervals so that if food is short, only the older, larger nestlings get fed. The chicks are naked, blind, and helpless when they hatch, and stand on their heels, unlike adults. Although some tree kingfishers, such as
147-399: Is earlier and has priority. The subfamily Halcyoninae is one of three subfamilies in the kingfisher family Alcedinidae. The other two are Alcedininae and Cerylinae . The subfamily contains around 70 species divided into 12 genera. A molecular study published in 2017 found that the genera Dacelo and Actenoides as currently defined are paraphyletic . The shovel-billed kookaburra in
168-625: Is extinct in Singapore . This is a bird of lowland rainforest found up to 1,700 m in Brunei, but normally below 1100 m altitude in the rest of its range. Unlike most kingfishers, it does not need pools or streams in its territory. The nest is a hole in a rotting tree trunk, or sometimes in the spherical nest of tree termites . Two to five white eggs are laid. In Thailand the eggs are laid between February and May. The banded kingfisher hunts large insects and occasionally small lizards , usually taken in
189-498: Is from the Latin pileatus meaning '-capped'. The species is monotypic . This kingfisher is about 28 centimetres (11 in) long. The adult has purple-blue wings and back, black head and shoulders, white neck collar and throat, and rufous underparts. The large bill and legs are bright red. In flight, large white patches or "mirrors" at the base of the primaries are visible on the blue and black wings. Sexes are similar, but juveniles are
210-1031: Is in summer. The nest is a tunnel in an earth bank. A single clutch of 4-5 round, white eggs is typical. A subspecies palawanensis has been described, but the species is considered to be monotypic with no clear plumage differences across its range. The species is found mainly near the coast in mangrove forests and along estuaries and rivers. The distribution ranges from India (including the Andaman and Nicobar Islands where they occur even on remote islands like Narcondam ), Sri Lanka, Kansu, Shansi, Korea, Malay Peninsula, Thailand, Burma, Ryukyu Islands, Bangladesh , Hainan, Philippines (Palawan, Balabac, Basilan, Tawi Tawi), Borneo, Sumatra east to Sulawesi where it occurs only in winter. Vagrants in winter have been recorded in Pakistan, while movements related to rainfall may lead to their being found far inland and away from their usual distribution. Like many other kingfishers, this species
231-514: The black-capped kingfisher , frequent wetlands, none are specialist fishers. Most species are watch-and-wait hunters which dive onto prey from a perch, mainly taking slow-moving invertebrates or small vertebrates. The shovel-billed kookaburra digs through leaf litter for worms and other prey, and the Vanuatu kingfisher feeds exclusively on insects and spiders. Several other western Pacific species are also mainly insectivorous and flycatch for prey. As with
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#1732852465028252-525: The monotypic genus Clytoceyx sits within Dacelo and the glittering kingfisher in the monotypic genus Caridonax lies within Actenoides . Kingfishers are short-tailed, large-headed, compact birds with long, pointed bills. Like other Coraciiformes, they are brightly coloured. The tree kingfishers are medium to large species, mostly typical kingfishers in appearance, although shovel-billed kookaburra has
273-485: The tree kingfishers is resident over much of its range, but northern populations are migratory , wintering south of their range in Sri Lanka , Thailand , Borneo and Java . It is distinctive in having a black cap that contrasts with the whitish throat, purple-blue wings and the coral red bill. The species is mainly found in coastal and mangrove habitats but can sometimes be found far inland. The black-capped kingfisher
294-540: The back. The female has rufous and black banding on the head and upperparts. The first formal description of the species was by the American naturalist Thomas Horsfield in 1821 under the binomial name Dacelo pulchella . The current genus Lacedo was introduced by the German ornithologist Ludwig Reichenbach in 1851. The word Lacedo is an anagram of Alcedo , the Latin word for kingfisher. The specific name pulchella
315-672: The central belly is white. The adult female is equally striking, with black-and-rufous-banded upperparts, and white underparts with some black bars on the chest and flanks. Young birds are duller than the adult of the same sex, have a brown and orange bill, and dusky barring on the underparts. The call is a long whistled wheeeoo followed by 15 repetitions of chiwiu in 17 seconds, the second syllable gradually fading away. The banded kingfisher will respond to imitations of its call. The species occurs in Myanmar , Thailand , Cambodia , Vietnam , Laos , Malaysia , Sumatra , Java and Brunei . It
336-406: The eggs and feed the chicks. Although some tree kingfishers frequent wetlands, none are specialist fish-eaters. Most species dive onto prey from a perch, mainly taking slow-moving invertebrates or small vertebrates. The tree kingfisher subfamily is often given the name Daceloninae introduce by Charles Lucien Bonaparte in 1841, but the name Halcyoninae introduced by Nicholas Aylward Vigors in 1825
357-406: The most species. Tree kingfishers use a range of habitats from tropical rainforest to open woodlands and thornbush country. Many are not closely tied to water, and can be found in arid areas of Australia and Africa. Tree kingfishers are monogamous and territorial, although some species, including three kookaburras, have a cooperative breeding system involving young from earlier broods. The nest
378-430: The other kingfisher families, insectivorous species tend to have flattened, red bills to assist in the capture of insects. Lacedo The banded kingfisher ( Lacedo pulchella ) is a tree kingfisher found in lowland tropical forests of southeast Asia. It is the only member of the genus Lacedo . Male and female adults are very different in plumage. The male has a bright blue crown with black and blue banding on
399-572: The trees, but sometimes from the ground. This species is uncommon but widespread in much of its range. It is rare in Java, very rare in Sumatra and extinct in Singapore. [REDACTED] Black-capped kingfisher The black-capped kingfisher ( Halcyon pileata ) is a tree kingfisher which is widely distributed in tropical Asia from India east to China, Korea and Southeast Asia. This most northerly of
420-582: The world. Tree kingfishers are widespread through Asia and Australasia , but also appear in Africa and the islands of the Pacific and Indian Oceans, using a range of habitats from tropical rainforest to open woodlands. The tree kingfishers are short-tailed, large-headed, compact birds with long, pointed bills. Like other Coraciiformes , they are brightly coloured. Most are monogamous and territorial, nesting in holes in trees or termite nests. Both parents incubate
441-478: Was described by the French polymath Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon in his Histoire Naturelle des Oiseaux in 1780. The bird was also illustrated in a hand-coloured plate engraved by François-Nicolas Martinet in the Planches Enluminées D'Histoire Naturelle , which was produced under the supervision of Edme-Louis Daubenton to accompany Buffon's text. Neither the plate caption nor Buffon's description included
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