THE BELTED KIXGFISHEE. 35 



head and body. They seem ahuost inadequate to support its wei.t^ht, and cer- 

 tainly do not appear to be much adapted to walking, an exercise which I have 

 never seen one induloe in. 



In its disj)(>sition it must be classed among- the unsocial iuul (piarrelsome 

 bii-ds, and, excepting during the mating and breeding season, it is rare to see two 

 together. As in everything else, however, there appear to be exceptions to this 

 rule, as Mr. W. E. Loucks, of Peoria, Illinois, writes me: "Along the Cedar 

 River, in Iowa, I found these birds in great numljers. A large clay bank along 

 the river resembled a honeycomb, so numerous were the holes made by these 

 birds. This is the only case that I know of where Kingfishers have been found 

 breeding in close proximity." 



As a rule each pair of birds seem to claim a certain range on some suitable 

 stream, lake, or mill pond, and should others intrude on this they are quickly 

 driven off. Clear streams or ponds, bordered with perpendicular banks and 

 low, bi-ush-covered shores, are their favorite resorts, and along such places one 

 will not have to go far before hearing the characteristic rattle of the Kingfisher, 

 or perhaps seeing one perched on a partly submerged snag or rock, on a pile of 

 driftwood near the shore, or on some small branch directly overhanging the 

 water. Every bird seems to have several favorite perches along its range, each 

 perhaps quite a distance away from the next, to which it Hies from time to time, 

 generally uttering its well-known shrill rattle in doing so. It is a sedentary 

 bird, but ever watchful and rather shy, sitting frequentl}' for an hour at a time 

 in the same position, occasionally moving its head back and forward, watching 

 for its prey as a cat does for a mouse. In such a posture the Kingfisher is one 

 of the most charming features of brook and pool. Should an unfoi-tunate fish 

 come within sight at such times, our lone fisher is at once alert enough, 

 craning its neck and looking into the water, until the i)roper moment arrives for 

 it to plunge downward, head first, completely disappearing out of sight, and 

 usually en^ierging with a wriggling captive firmly grasped in its bill, for it rarely 

 misses its victim. It generally rises some feet into the air before dashing 

 perpendicularly into tlie water. 



While difi'erent kinds of small fish undoul:»tedly constitute a large part of 

 the Kingfisher's food where readily procurable, various species of Crustacea, as 

 well as insects, such as coleoptera, grasshoppers, and the large black crickets found 

 in many of our Western States, are also eaten to a greater or less extent, accord- 

 ing to circumstances; frogs and lizards are «lso acceptable prev. In southern 

 Arizona, for instance, where running streams are few, I have found Kingfishers 

 breedhig in localities where fish must have formed but a very small percentage 

 t their daily fare; there they li\ed principally on lizards, beetles, and large 

 grasshoppci-s. I have more than once seen one of these birds perched on soiue 

 twig overhanging a dry, sandy river bed, where no water was to l)e found within 

 several miles, on the watch for the kind of food procurable in such localities. 



Mr. W. E. Loucks writes me that he has found nests of these birds in the 

 banks of dried-up streams, miles from any water containing fish, and savs that 



o 



