Alternative name: Blue-bellied Kingfisher
- Halcyon cyanoventris
Identification
22cm. A medium-sized, dark Kingfisher.
- Rich dark brown head
- Deep rufous collar and breast
- Dark purple body
- Turquoise-blue primary coverts, secondaries and tail
- White wing patch on base of dark-tipped primaries, very prominent in flight
- Red bill
Juveniles are duller, have a whitish throat and a brownish-orange bill.
Distribution
Only found on Java and Bali, Indonesia.
Fairly common but range seems to be contracting due unknown reasons.
Taxonomy
This is a monotypic species.
Forms a superspecies with White-throated Kingfisher and is sometimes considered conspecific.
Habitat
Found in a variety of open habitats like pastures, fish ponds, coastal scrub, mangroves, open dry forest, paddyfields, dried marshes and gardens and parks.
Occurs from sea-level up to 1500m.
Behaviour
Feeds mainly on insects but takes also fish, frogs, shrimps and larvae of water beetles.
Often on a perch from where it flies down to catch prey on the ground or at water's edge.
Breeding season from February to September. The nest is a self-dugged hole in a bank near a watercourse, in a ditch or an earth mound. The tunnel is 1m long and the entrance in a sunny position. Lays 3 to 5 eggs.
A sedentary species.
References
- Del Hoyo, J, A Elliot, and J Sargatal, eds. 2001. Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 6: Mousebirds to Hornbills. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions. ISBN 978-8487334306
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, B.L. Sullivan, C. L. Wood, and D. Roberson. 2012. The eBird/Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to October 2012. Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0801445019. Spreadsheet available at http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/downloadable-clements-checklist
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2025) Javan Kingfisher. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 3 May 2025 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Javan_Kingfisher
