Common Kingfisher

Characteristics

A riverside wild bird with a beautiful emerald green that changes color depending on the light conditions.

The back from the head to the tail is vivid blue-green. This beautiful color is called a structural color, not due to pigments, and it reflects various blues in the human eye by being reflected intricately when light hits the fine structures on the surface of the feathers. The ears and throat are white, and the belly is light brown. Legs are red. It also has a long beak for catching fish.Young birds have a slightly faded blackish color.

In the kanji, it is written as "Jade" and it has been called "the mountain jewel" because of its beautiful color. Not only in the clear stream, but also in streams in the city if conditions such as food are met.

How to distinguish male and female kingfishers

Kingfishers look a bit different between males and females, so it's a bit difficult to tell them apart. The key to identification is the beak, the male beak is black overall, while the female beak has a red bottom.

Common Kingfisher barks

Cry in a high voice. While walking along the river, a kingfisher that noticed a human escaped while making this cry. Sometimes it's difficult to find a kingfisher in the grass, so I sometimes rely on this bark to look for it.

Ecology

Inhabits waterfronts such as rivers and ponds. They have a strong sense of territory and often have the same individual in the same place. Dive from the top of a tree or rock for a small fish and catch dexterously. When the captured fish are alive, hit the prey on branches and rocks to make them mature and swallow. When flying, it quickly flaps on the surface of the water and moves in a straight line. It sometimes makes a high cry when flying. Also, it hover for a few seconds at a height of about 1 m above the surface of the water.
Nests are made by digging holes with a diameter of about 15 cm on the vertical soil wall along the river. Nests can reach 90 cm in length. During the breeding season, males provide courtship feeding to give prey to females. Similarly, chicks grow while receiving food from their parents.

Habitat

I took a picture of a pair on the shore of Asakawa River, Hachioji city. The kingfisher was diving from time to time looking for prey on a block in the river. At the moment I found this pair, there was another male some distance away, but he was driven away at the end of the quarrel.
In Hachioji City, Tokyo, you can see Kasemi anywhere along the river, but it's a bit difficult to shoot without being surprised. These two were on a busy riverbank along the cycling road, so maybe they were a little used to people.

Video of Common Kingfisher

Introducing a video of the Common Kingfisher.