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Species
Alcedinidae
EOL Text
Fossils of kingfishers from as early as 40 million years ago have been found in Wyoming (USA).
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Rights holder/Author | ©1995-2012, The Regents of the University of Michigan and its licensors |
Source | http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Alcedinidae.html |
There are relatively few records of adult kingfisher predation. Kingfishers are quick fliers, and probably able to escape most predators. Most known predators of adult kingfisher are raptors. Nest predators include foxes, minks, dingoes, skunks, raccoons, chimpanzees, snakes , monitor lizards, driver ants, and mongooses.
When threatened, kingfishers seem to employ one of two strategies; they either try to evade the predator by dodging behind trees or diving into the water, or they attack the predator directly, mobbing it until it leaves the area. A few species have alternative strategies; yellow-billed kookaburras raise their head feathers when threatened, revealing two black spots that resemble large eyes. When alarmed, young red-backed kookaburras assume a posture with their eyes closed and their beak pointed upward that make them look like the limb of a tree from above. Kingfishers aggressively defend the nest area against nest predators, often attacking intruders including humans.
Known Predators:
- owls (Strigiformes)
- foxes (Vulpes)
- minks (Mustela)
- dingoes (Canis lupus dingo)
- skunks (Mephitinae)
- raccoons (Procyon lotor)
- chimpanzees (Pan)
- snakes (Serpentes)
- monitor lizards (Varanidae)
- driver ants (Formicidae)
- mongooses and relatives (Herpestidae)
Anti-predator Adaptations: mimic
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Rights holder/Author | ©1995-2012, The Regents of the University of Michigan and its licensors |
Source | http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Alcedinidae.html |
Alcedinidae (kingfisher) preys on:
Actinopterygii
Characinidae
Poeciliidae
Cichlasoma maculicauda
Based on studies in:
Malaysia (Swamp)
UK: Yorkshire, Aire, Nidd & Wharfe Rivers (River)
Panama, Gatun Lake (Lake or pond)
This list may not be complete but is based on published studies.
- T. Mizuno and J. I. Furtado, Food chain. In: Tasek Bera, J. I. Furtado and S. Mori, Eds. (Junk, The Hague, Netherlands, 1982), pp. 357-359, from p. 358.
- E. Percival and H. Whitehead, 1929. A quantitative study of the fauna of some types of stream-bed. J. Ecol. 17:282-314, from p. 311 & overleaf.
- T. M. Zaret and R. T. Paine, Species introduction in a tropical lake, Science 182:449-455 (1973), from p. 452.
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Rights holder/Author | Cynthia Sims Parr, Joel Sachs, SPIRE |
Source | http://spire.umbc.edu/fwc/ |
Kingfishers have very good eyesight, and rely heavily on sight for hunting. Their eyes have two fovea, which allow them to very accurately judge the distance to a prey item by turning their head slightly. Their eyes are also especially rich in oils that enhance color vision. At least one species of kingfisher is able to see near UV light. When some kingfishers dive for fish, their eyes are covered by a nictitating membrane. This means that these species must rely on their sense of touch to know when to snap their bill closed in order to catch the fish.
Kingfishers are highly vocal species that used calls to advertise their territory and to communicate between family members. Some pairs of kingfishers call in duets, and cooperative groups of kookaburras call in a chorus at dawn and dusk. While the vocalizations of most species are not well studied, those species that have been studied often have several different vocalizations. For example, belted kingfishers (Megaceryle alcyon) use at least six calls in various combinations to convey messages. Several species also produce non-vocal sounds, such as bill rattling.
Communication Channels: visual ; acoustic
Other Communication Modes: duets ; choruses
Perception Channels: ultraviolet
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Rights holder/Author | ©1995-2012, The Regents of the University of Michigan and its licensors |
Source | http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Alcedinidae.html |
Kingfishers are thought to be relatively long-lived, but survival and longevity unknown for most species. Adult annual survival is thought to range between 25 and 55 %. A common kingfisher (Alcedo atthis) is among the oldest known kingfishers at 15 years and 5 months. A captive laughing kookaburra (Dacelo novaeguineae) also lived over 15 years. Sources of kingfisher mortality include predation, collection, and collision with man-made structures such as windows, towers and building during nocturnal migrations.
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Rights holder/Author | ©1995-2012, The Regents of the University of Michigan and its licensors |
Source | http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Alcedinidae.html |
All kingfishers are territorial. Most are also monogamous, and many pair for life. Courtship involves aerial chases, individual and joint displays, and courtship feeding. Breeding pairs emphatically defend a territory using calls and displays, which can include spiraling flight displays or displaying boldly marked plumage by perching high within the territory and spinning slowly around a vertical axis. Kingfishers actively defend their territory, chasing intruders and when necessary, grappling in the air, sometimes toppling to the ground or into the water where the fight continues. Particularly aggressive neighbors may even enter the nest cavities of one another to puncture eggs. Territory size varies between species and with food abundance and nest site availability. Where nest sites are particularly scarce, a few species of kingfishers will breed in loose colonies and defend only an area immediately surrounding the nest hole.
Some species of kingfishers are cooperative breeders. In these species, a male and female pair has one to several “helpers” that help defend the territory and feed the chicks. Helpers can be primary (related) or secondary (unrelated). They are often young from previous broods that may help at the nest for several years, and can dramatically increase nestling survival in some cases. Polygamy is known to occur in at least one species of kingfisher; male common kingfishers (Alcedo meninting) in Russia frequently breed with up to three females.
Mating System: monogamous ; polygynous ; cooperative breeder
Details of the breeding biology of many kingfishers are unknown. Most kingfishers that have been studied begin breeding at one year old, and can raise one to four broods per year. The female lays 2 to 10 (usually 3 to 6) white, unmarked eggs that weigh 2 to 12 g each. Eggs are laid approximately one day apart, and incubation begins either when the first egg is laid, or after the majority of eggs have been laid. The naked and blind chicks hatch synchronously in species where incubation does not begin until most or all eggs have been laid, and asynchronously in species where incubation begins with the first or second egg. Siblicide is common in the latter. Nestlings fledge three to eight weeks after hatching, and are dependent on the parents for supplemental food for several days to weeks after fledging. In most species, the adults eventually force the fledglings to leave their territory. The timing of breeding varies considerably within this family. Generally, kingfishers in temperate regions breed during the spring and summer. Those in tropical regions can breed year-round or seasonally during the time of highest prey availability.
Most kingfishers normally rear one brood per year. However, under favorable conditions, some species may rear up to four broods per year. In some cases, the male may even begin digging a new nest tunnel before the young of the previous clutch have fledged.
Kingfishers nest most often in earthen banks such as those along rivers or lakes, but they also use termite nests and tree cavities. Tree cavities made by other species, such as woodpeckers, are readily used. If these are not available, kingfishers will excavate a cavity in wood (if it is sufficiently rotten), or another substrate. The male and female excavate the cavity together, taking turns pecking and scraping material with their bills and feet. Several species begin excavation by flying bill-first into the surface, an occasionally fatal strategy. The tunnel to a kingfisher nest cavity may be as long as three meters. The cavity is slightly larger in diameter than the tunnel, and is not lined with any material. Nest cavities can take up to a week to excavate, and pairs often use the same nest hole for many years.
Key Reproductive Features: seasonal breeding ; year-round breeding ; gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate); fertilization (Internal )
Both male and female kingfishers incubate the eggs, which take 2 to 4 weeks to hatch. During the nestling stage, which lasts 3 to 8 weeks, both parents feed the young regurgitant, and later whole prey items. During the last part of the nestling stage, parents may feed each chick as frequently as once every 15 minutes. When the nestlings are large enough to fly, the parents may withhold food for a few days to encourage the chicks to leave the nest. After the chicks have fledged, the parents provide supplemental food while the chicks learn to hunt for themselves. Some kingfishers also teach their young to hunt. For example, belted kingfishers (Megaceryle alcyon) drop dead prey into the water for their young to practice diving. After up to three weeks of supplemental feeding, adult kingfishers usually force their young to leave their territory.
Adult kingfishers do not engage in any nest sanitation, such as removing feces from the nest cavity. Because most kingfisher nests have only one outlet, nests can become rather smelly and are often infested with maggots as feces from the chicks and food scraps accumulate.
Parental Investment: altricial ; male parental care ; female parental care
- Fry, C., K. Fry, A. Harris. 1992. Kingfishers, Bee-eaters and Rollers. Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press.
- Clancey, P. 1992. Kingfishers of Sub-Saharan Africa. Johannesburg: Jonathan Ball and AD. Donker Publishers.
- 2003. Kingfishers (Alcedinidae). Pp. 5-10 in M Hutchins, J Jackson, W Bock, eds. Grzimek's Animal Life Encyclopedia, Vol. 10. Detroit: Gale Group.
- Fry, C. 2003. Kingfishers. Pp. 366-371 in C Perrins, ed. The New Encyclopedia of Birds. Oxford: Oxford Univeristy Press.
- Krueper, D. 2001. Kingfishers. Pp. 370-372 in C Elphick, J Dunning, D Sibley, eds. The Sibley Guide to Bird Life and Behavior. New York: Alfred A. Knopf.
- Woodall, P. 2001. Family Alcedinidae (Kingfishers). Pp. 130-187 in J del Hoyo, A Elliott, J Sargatal, eds. The Handbook of the Birds of the World, Vol. 6. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions.
License | http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/ |
Rights holder/Author | ©1995-2012, The Regents of the University of Michigan and its licensors |
Source | http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Alcedinidae.html |
Barcode of Life Data Systems (BOLD) Stats
Specimen Records: | 464 | Public Records: | 119 |
Specimens with Sequences: | 260 | Public Species: | 29 |
Specimens with Barcodes: | 256 | Public BINs: | 33 |
Species: | 54 | ||
Species With Barcodes: | 35 | ||
Collection Sites: world map showing specimen collection locations for Alcedinidae
The biggest threat facing most kingfisher populations is the destruction or alteration of their habitat by logging, pollution of water bodies and development. Significant numbers of kingfishers are also killed by shooting, collision with cars and buildings, and accidental poisoning from pesticides and poisons intended for other species. While it appears that many species of kingfishers are relatively adaptable to changes in habitat, the biology of most species is not well known, making conservation planning or prediction of impacts to habitat difficult.
The IUCN lists 1 kingfisher species as “Endangered”, 11 as “Vulnerable”, 12 as “Near-threatened”, and 3 as “Data deficient”. No kingfisher species are listed under any CITES Appendices. In the United States, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service lists one species, the Guam Micronesian kingfisher (Halcyon cinnamomina cinnamomina) as endangered. Four species are protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act.
- 2003. "UNEP-WCMC Species Database: CITES-Listed Species" (On-line). Accessed March 26, 2004 at http://www.cites.org/eng/resources/species.html.
- IUCN, 2003. "2003 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species" (On-line). Accessed March 26, 2004 at http://www.redlist.org/.
- Threatened and Endangered Species System, 2003. "U.S. Listed Vertebrate Animal Species Report by Taoxonomic Group" (On-line). Accessed March 26, 2004 at http://ecos.fws.gov/tess_public/TESSWebpageVipListed?code=V&listings=0#B.
- U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, date unknown. "Birds Protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act" (On-line). Accessed March 26, 2004 at http://migratorybirds.fws.gov/intrnltr/mbta/mbtintro.html.
- United States Department of Agriculture, 2002. "Integrated Taxonomic Information System" (On-line). Accessed March 26, 2004 at http://www.itis.usda.gov/.
License | http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/ |
Rights holder/Author | ©1995-2012, The Regents of the University of Michigan and its licensors |
Source | http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Alcedinidae.html |