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''Alcedo azurea'' | ''Alcedo azurea'' | ||
==Identification== | ==Identification== | ||
− | Length 16 cm< | + | Length 16 cm<br /> |
*Deep blue to azure back | *Deep blue to azure back | ||
*Large white to buff spot on side of neck and throat | *Large white to buff spot on side of neck and throat |
Revision as of 11:09, 10 March 2015
- Ceyx azurea
Alcedo azurea
Identification
Length 16 cm
- Deep blue to azure back
- Large white to buff spot on side of neck and throat
- Rufous-buff with some blue-violet streaks on breast and flanks
- Red feet
- White lores.
Distribution
Found throughout New Guinea including nearby islands, also the Moluccas, Australia and Tasmania.
Taxonomy
This species is included in genus Alcedo by some authorities.
Subspecies[1]
- C. a. affinis:
- Northern Moluccas (Morotai, Halmahera and Bacan)
- C. a. wallaceanus:
- Aru Islands
- C. a. lessonii:
- Lowlands of New Guinea, western Papuan islands and Fergusson Island
- C. a. ochrogaster:
- Northern New Guinea and islands in Geelvink Bay
- C. a. yamdenae:
- Tanimbar Islands (southern Banda Sea)
- C. a. ruficollaris:
- Coastal northern Australia and major offshore outlying islands
- C. a. azurea:
- Coastal eastern and south-eastern Australia
- C. a. diemenensis:
Habitat
Always spotted near water of some kind; ponds, rivers, lakes and mangroves.
Behaviour
Diet
The diet consists mostly of fish and insects.
Breeding
It nests in a chamber up to 1 metre long in an earthen creek bank. 5-7 white, rounded, glossy eggs are laid.
Vocalisation
The voice is a high-pitched, shrill, pseet-pseet.
References
- Clements, JF. 2008. The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to December 2008. Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0801445019.
- Wikipedia
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Azure Kingfisher. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 28 March 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Azure_Kingfisher