Blue-eared Kingfisher - BirdForum Opus

Male, subspecies verreauxii
Photo by wengchun
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, July 2014

Alcedo meninting

Identification

17cm (6½ in)

• Rufous frontal spot
• White blaze on side of neck
• Dark cobalt-blue upperparts
• Rufous underparts
• Blue ear coverts
• Coral legs and feet
• Black bill

Distribution

Female, subspecies coltarti
Photo by nothinghill
Khao Yai National Park, Thailand, June 2015

South and south east Asia:
Asia: China, Nepal, India, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Eastern and Western Himalayas, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Bhutan
Southeast Asia: Indochina, Myanmar, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia, Malay Peninsula, Brunei, Singapore, Philippines, Borneo, Indonesia, Greater Sundas, Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, Lesser Sundas, Bali, Moluccas

Taxonomy

Subspecies

There are 11 subspecies^[1]:

• A. m. coltarti: Lowlands of Nepal and northern India to southern Myanmar and Laos
• A. m. laubmanni: Eastern India
• A. m. phillipsi: South-western India (Kerala) and Sri Lanka
• A. m. scintillans: Peninsular Myanmar and peninsular Thailand
• A. m. rufigastra: Andaman Islands
• A. m. verreauxii: Malay Peninsula, Sumatra, Borneo and Sulu Archipelago^[2]
• A. m. proxima: Pagai Islands (Mentawi Archipelago off western Sumatra)
• A. m. subviridis: Nias Island (off north-western Sumatra)
• A. m. callima: Batu Islands (off western Sumatra)

Juvenile female, subspecies verreauxii
Photo by Raptorman182
Sabah, Borneo, April 2015

• A. m. meninting: Java and Bali to Lombok, Sulawesi, Sula Island, western Lesser Sundas
• A. m. amadoni: Southern Philippines (Balabac, Busuanga and Culion)

Habitat

Streams, pools and lakes in dense broadleaved, lowland forest under 1000m.

Behaviour

Diet

Their diet consists of fish, crustaceans, insects and larvae, including dragonflies.

References

Juvenile male
Photo by the late Laurence Poh
Kinta Nature Park, Perak, Malaysia

1. Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2014. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: Version 6.9., with updates to August 2014. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
2. Avibase
3. Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved June 2015)
4. Wikipedia

• List of references

Recommended Citation

• BirdForum Opus contributors. (2021) Blue-eared Kingfisher. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 29 April 2021 from https://www.birdforum.net/wiki/Blue-eared_Kingfisher

External Links

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