THE BELTED KINGFISHER 



THIS self-appointed guardian of our streams and 

 lakes is clad in a suit of gendarme blue. He wears 

 a sharp two-edged sword in his cap, and carries a rattle 

 in his throat. 



He is a perfect example of "Watchful Waiting," as he 

 sits motionless on a bough overhanging a stream, with 

 his fierce eyes fixed intently upon the waters beneath him. 

 When an unwary fish swims by, this blue-coat plunges 

 after it and spears it with deadly accuracy. If small, 

 the fish is swallowed whole; if large, it is beaten to death 

 against a tree, and devoured with difficulty. When fish 

 are not obtainable, the kingfisher will eat frogs and crus- 

 taceans, and sometimes grasshoppers, crickets, and beetles. 

 Fish, however, are his favorite food.^ 



The nest is as unusual and interesting as the bird him- 

 self. It consists of a tunnel excavated in a bank by the 

 long knife-shaped bills of the kingfisher and his mate. 

 A cavity of good size must be hollowed out to accommo- 

 date so large a bird and a family of from five to eight 

 lusty youngsters. They are lively and quarrelsome; they 

 set up a great clamor when Father or Mother arrives 

 with an already-prepared fish-dinner. Dr. Francis H. 

 Herrick, in his delightful book, "The Home Life of Wild 

 Birds," tells of his observations of a kingfisher's nest and 

 nesting habits as follows: "The nest had a 4 inch bore; 

 4 feet from the opening was a vaulted chamber 6 inches 

 high and 10 inches across. . . ." 



A series of rattles announced the approach of the parent 

 bird "who came at full tilt with a fish in her bill, making 

 the earth resound." In response came "muffled rattles of 



1 Educational Leaflet No. 19, National Association of Audubon Societies. 



[145] 



