The Kingfisher is a very silent bird as a rule, and its notes are often 

 uttered in so low a tone as to be almost inaudible at a short distance. Its 

 note is a feeble 'peep,' which is sometimes drawn-out and plaintive, and 

 sometimes shortened into 'pip, pip' 



There is little doubt that the Kingfisher pairs for life. It is rather an 

 early breeder, and its eggs are usually laid by the end of April. I have 

 myself seen a nest containing fully-fledged young on the second of May, in 

 Perthshire. The Kingfisher breeds in a hole which it usually makes for 

 itself, though occasionally the burrow of a water-rat or a disused Sand- 

 martin's hole is utilised. The nesting-site is usually on the banks of the 

 stream or pond which it frequents, but I have found it in a hole in a tree 

 some distance from water, and it often nests in broken scars or disused 

 gravel-pits or quarries some distance from the nearest water. The hole takes 

 some time to excavate, often more than a fortnight. Sometimes a large stone 

 or rock stops the work after the little birds have been some time at it ; in 

 this case a new hole is commenced close at hand, and often several are begun 

 before the birds are suited. The hole is tunnel-shaped, gradually rising from 

 the entrance, so it is evident that the Kingfisher understands the principle of 

 drainage. Some holes are much longer than others. I have seen a nest 

 only two feet from the orifice, and I once dug nearly seven feet into a bank 

 and had to give up my search, though I had seen the old birds going in and 

 out of the hole. The nesting-chamber is circular, about eight inches in 

 diameter, and the floor of it, as well as most of the tunnel, is covered with a 

 very dark green gluey substance smelling strongly of fish. The nest consists 

 of a large handful of the dry and bleached bones of tiny fish, hairlike ribs, 

 vertebrae and skulls, the pellets which are ejected by the bird. 



The Kingfisher lays from six to nine eggs ; they are round and very 

 glossy, and when fresh have a beautiful pinkish bloom, imparted by the 

 yolk, which shows through the transparent shell. They vary in length from 

 94 to "86 inch, and in breadth from '80 to 73 inch. 



Both birds share in the duties of incubation, and when the young are 

 hatched they are taxed to the uttermost to provide food for them. When 

 fully fledged they leave the nest and sit on the twigs or stumps near the 

 hole, waiting for the food which is brought them every few minutes by the 

 old birds. At night they roost in the nesting-hole. 



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