Monday, January 7, 2013,
This is a female Belted Kingfisher. You can tell because males don’t sport that rusty coloration on their bellies and sides. The males are all white below that slate-blue ‘belt’ across their chest. These ‘Blue Jays on steroids’ as I like to describe them are amazing hunters. They wait by rivers, lakes, basically anywhere there’s small fish to be found, and then they dive head-first to grab fish from near the surface. That’s how they make use of that powerful bill. Small fish or not, this strikes me as a fearless way to make a living and these birds have always impressed me. I love to watch them at work. JK
I love kingfishers and love the ratchey sound they make. 🙂 Great picture! 🙂
I like their call too. Makes me think of Woody Woodpecker for some reason. JK.
Oh, I HATE Woody Woodpecker. He was the most annoying creature. No, the kingfishers remind me of my Dad’s ratchet tool that I used to play with. If Woody had flown by, I think I would have hit him with the ratchet tool. That cartoon gives woodpeckers a bad name. 😉