Cerulean kingfisher | |
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Aves |
Order: | Coraciiformes |
Family: | Alcedinidae |
Subfamily: | Alcedininae |
Genus: | Alcedo |
Species: | A. coerulescens |
Binomial name | |
Alcedo coerulescens Vieillot, 1818 | |
The cerulean kingfisher (Alcedo coerulescens) is a kingfisher in the subfamily Alcedininae which is native to parts of Indonesia. With an overall metallic blue impression, it is very similar to the common kingfisher, but it is white underneath instead of orange. Males average bluer than females, which have a greenish cast. It is sometimes called the small blue kingfisher but in Indonesia and parts of Asia that name refers to Alcedo atthis (common kingfisher). [2]
The first formal description of the cerulean kingfisher was by the French ornithologist Louis Pierre Vieillot in 1818. He coined the binomial name Alcedo coerulescens. [3] [4] The specific epithet coerulescens is from the Latin caerulescens meaning "bluish". [5] The species is monotypic. [6]
The cerulean kingfisher is a small kingfisher with a length of 13 cm (5.1 in). The upperparts are a range of shades of blue with white lores and a prominent white patch on each side of the neck. The underparts are white with an azure-blue breast-band. The bill is blackish and the legs are dark brown. The female has duller and slightly greenish plumage and a narrower breast band. [7]
The cerulean kingfisher is native to Sumatra, Java, the Kangean Islands, Bali, Lombok and Sumbawa, all in Indonesia. It is a resident species that inhabits low-lying areas near streams, canals, flooded paddy-fields and tidal estuaries. [7]
The common kingfisher, also known as the Eurasian kingfisher and river kingfisher, is a small kingfisher with seven subspecies recognized within its wide distribution across Eurasia and North Africa. It is resident in much of its range, but migrates from areas where rivers freeze in winter.
The river kingfishers or pygmy kingfishers, subfamily Alcedininae, are one of the three subfamilies of kingfishers. The river kingfishers are widespread through Africa and east and south Asia as far as Australia, with one species, the common kingfisher also appearing in Europe and northern Asia. This group includes many kingfishers that actually dive for fish. The origin of the subfamily is thought to have been in Asia.
The bluish-grey saltator or Amazonian grey saltator is a passerine bird in the tanager family Thraupidae that is widespread in semi-open habitats in tropical and subtropical South America.
The chestnut-headed bee-eater, or bay-headed bee-eater, is a bird in the bee-eater family Meropidae. It breeds on the Indian subcontinent and adjoining regions, ranging from India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka across Southeast Asia to Indonesia.
Eurystomus is a genus of roller, one of the two genera in that family of birds. The name means ‘broad mouth’, from the Greek eurus and stoma.
The malachite kingfisher is a river kingfisher which is widely distributed in Africa south of the Sahara. It is largely resident except for seasonal climate-related movements.
The woodland kingfisher is a tree kingfisher that is widely distributed in Africa south of the Sahara.
The stork-billed kingfisher, is a tree kingfisher which is widely but sparsely distributed in the tropical Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia, from India to Indonesia. This kingfisher is resident throughout its range.
The half-collared kingfisher is a kingfisher in the subfamily Alcedininae that is found in southern and eastern Africa. It feeds almost exclusively on fish and frequents streams, rivers and larger bodies of water with dense shoreline vegetation.
The Oriental dollarbird is a bird of the roller family, so named because of the distinctive pale blue or white, coin-shaped spots on its wings. It can be found from Australia to Korea, Japan and India.
The blue-eared kingfisher is found in Asia, ranging across the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia. It is found mainly in dense shaded forests where it hunts in small streams. It is darker crowned, with darker rufous underparts and lacking the rufous ear stripe of the common kingfisher which is found in more open habitats. A number of subspecies have been described that differ in measurement and colour shade. Adult males have an all dark bill while females have a reddish lower mandible.
The maroon-bellied parakeet is a small parrot found from southeastern Brazil to north-eastern Argentina, including eastern Paraguay and Uruguay. It is also known as the reddish-bellied parakeet, and in aviculture it is usually referred to as the maroon-bellied conure, reddish-bellied conure or brown-eared conure.
The collared kingfisher is a medium-sized kingfisher belonging to the subfamily Halcyoninae, the tree kingfishers. It is also known as the white-collared kingfisher, black-masked kingfisher or mangrove kingfisher. It has a wide range extending from the Red Sea across southern Asia to Melanesia. A number of subspecies and subspecies groups have been split from this species including the Pacific kingfisher, the islet kingfisher, the Torresian kingfisher, the Mariana kingfisher, and the Melanesian kingfisher.
The banded kingfisher is a tree kingfisher found in lowland tropical forests of southeast Asia. It is the only member of the genus Lacedo. Male and female adults are very different in plumage. The male has a bright blue crown with black and blue banding on the back. The female has rufous and black banding on the head and upperparts.
Alcedo is a genus of birds in the kingfisher subfamily Alcedininae. The genus was introduced by Carl Linnaeus in 1758 in the 10th edition of his Systema Naturae. The type species is the common kingfisher. Alcedo is the Latin for "kingfisher".
The little kingfisher is a species of kingfisher in the subfamily Alcedininae.
The purple-winged roller is a species of bird in the family Coraciidae. It is endemic to the Sulawesi subregion in Indonesia and can be found on the islands of Sulawesi, Bangka, Lembeh, Manterawu, Muna and Butung.
The blue-throated roller is a species of roller in the family Coraciidae. It is native to the African tropical rainforest.
The Society kingfisher or Tahiti kingfisher is a species of bird in the family Alcedinidae. It is endemic to the Society Islands of French Polynesia. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest and subtropical or tropical moist montane forest.
The broad-billed roller is a member of the roller family of birds which breeds across tropical Africa and Madagascar in all but the driest regions. It is a wet season breeder, which migrates from the northern and southern areas of its range towards the moister equatorial belt in the dry season.