Alternative name: Dwarf Kingfisher
- Ispidina lecontei
Identification
10 cm (4 in) Smallest Kingfisher
- Rufous head
- Black forehead
- Small iridescent blue tips to crown feathers
Sexes similar
Distribution
Africa: found from Sierra Leone to northern Democratic Republic of the Congo, western Uganda, and northern Angola
Taxonomy
Two subspecies are recognized[1].
- I. l. ruficeps - west Africa, from Sierra Leone east to Ghana
- I. l. lecontei - southwestern Nigeria and Cameroon to Gabon, and from the Congo Basin east to the western Rift Valley in southwestern Uganda and south to northern Angola
Habitat
Primary rainforest, tropical moist broadleaf forest, often along streams, also dense undergrowth in riverine forest.
Behaviour
Diet
Their main diet consists of insects, such as damselflies, mantises, beetles and their larvae; ants and large flies.
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, S. M. Billerman, T. A. Fredericks, J. A. Gerbracht, D. Lepage, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2021. The eBird/Clements checklist of Birds of the World: v2021. Downloaded from https://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- Woodall, P.F. (2020). African Dwarf-kingfisher (Ispidina lecontei). In: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., Sargatal, J., Christie, D.A. & de Juana, E. (eds.). Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. (retrieved from https://www.hbw.com/node/55780 on 7 March 2020)
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2025) African Dwarf Kingfisher. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 2 May 2025 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/African_Dwarf_Kingfisher
External Links
GSearch checked for 2020 platform.
