[Wild England - an A-Z compendium of England's Native Wildlife logo]

Kingfisher

INTRODUCTION
Kingfisher.jpg

The Kingfisher is a bright electric-blue and orange bird that has a long pointed dagger-like beak. It can be found throughout England near still or slow-flowing waters such as rivers, streams, ponds, lakes and canals, but it is very rarely seen because it is extremely shy.

The Kingfisher is a small bird with quite a large head. its head is mainly electric-blue with orange cheeks. It has a white throat and white markings on each side of its neck. The upperparts are electric-blue and the underparts are orange. It has broad wings and a very short tail. The male Kingfisher has a black beak, whereas the female has a beak that is black on top and a reddish colour underneath. The Kingfisher's legs are a bright red colour.

Kingfishers can fly very quickly and can beat their wings so fast that they almost look like a blur to the eye. They often fly straight and over low water, but if they cross land they fly higher. Kingfishers prefer to perch when hunting for food so they try and find perches that overhang water and then patiently wait for any prey to flow or pass by. They mainly feed on fish and sometimes on aquatic insects.

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