198 KINGFISHERS 



FAMILY ALCEDINIDiE : KINGFISHERS. 



GENUS CERYLE. 



General Characters. — Head with occipital crest ; bill longer than head, 

 stout, acute ; wings long and pointed ; tail much shorter than wing- ; tarsus 

 only about half as long- as middle toe. 



KEY TO SPECIES. 



1. Upper parts bluish gray. 



2. Belly white alcyon, p. 198. 



2'. Belly rufous torquata, p. 199. 



1. Upper parts metallic bottle green .... septentrionalis. p. 199. 



390. Ceryle alcyon (Linn.). Belted Kingfisher. 



Adult male. — Under parts wbite, with blue gray belt across breast ; 

 crest and upper parts bluish gray ; nuchal collar white ; wing quills black. 



Fig. 260. 



marked with white ; tall with middle feathers bluish gray, the rest black, 

 spotted with white. Adult female : similar, but belly partly banded and 

 sides heavily washed with rufous. Young : like adults, but male with 

 breast band and sides tinged with rusty. Length : 11.00-14.50, wing 6.00- 

 6.50, tail :5.SO-4.oO. bill 2 or more. 



Distribution. — North America from the Arctic Ocean south to Panama 

 and the West Indies. Breeds from the southern border of the United 

 States northward ; accidental at the Hawaiian Islands. 



Nest. — A burrow 4 to 15 feet long, in railroad cuts or perpendicular 

 banks over water, f'^ggs : usually 5 to 8, white. 



Food. — Fisb, and when not obtainable frogs, lizards, Crustacea, and 

 insects such as coleoptera, grasshoppers, and large black crickets. 



So long as the fishing is good the kingfisher is equally at home in 

 Maine, southern Texas, or the Yosemite, but in the Sierra Nevada 

 mountains the brown streams polluted by placer mining have no 

 attraction for him, and when you hear his rattle as you ride through 

 the forest you may know that near by you will find a clear mountain 

 brook where you may quench your thirst. 



What rare spots the birds recall ! They are associated with the 



