Water kingfisher
The pied kingfisher (Ceryle rudis ) is a species of water kingfisher widely distributed across Africa and Asia. Originally described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758, it has five recognised subspecies. Its black and white plumage and crest, as well as its habit of hovering over clear lakes and rivers before diving for fish, make it distinctive. Males have a double band across the breast, while females have a single gorget that is often broken in the middle. They are usually found in pairs or small family groups. When perched, they often bob their head and flick up their tail.
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DiurnalDiurnal animals are active during the daytime, with a period of sleeping or other inactivity at night. The timing of activity by an animal depends ...
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CarnivoreA carnivore meaning 'meat eater' is an organism that derives its energy and nutrient requirements from a diet consisting mainly or exclusively of a...
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PiscivoresA piscivore is a carnivorous animal that eats primarily fish. Piscivorous is equivalent to the Greek-derived word ichthyophagous. Fish were the die...
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TerrestrialTerrestrial animals are animals that live predominantly or entirely on land (e.g., cats, ants, snails), as compared with aquatic animals, which liv...
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PredatorPredators are animals that kill and eat other organisms, their prey. Predators may actively search for or pursue prey or wait for it, often conceal...
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AltricialAltricial animals are those species whose newly hatched or born young are relatively immobile. They lack hair or down, are not able to obtain food ...
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FossorialA fossorial animal is one adapted to digging which lives primarily but not solely, underground. Some examples are badgers, naked mole-rats, clams, ...
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GlidingGliding flight is heavier-than-air flight without the use of thrust and is employed by gliding animals. Birds in particular use gliding flight to m...
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TerritorialA territory is a sociographical area that which an animal consistently defends against the conspecific competition (or, occasionally, against anima...
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OviparousOviparous animals are female animals that lay their eggs, with little or no other embryonic development within the mother. This is the reproductive...
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MonogamyMonogamy is a form of relationship in which both the male and the female has only one partner. This pair may cohabitate in an area or territory for...
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FlockingFlocking birds are those that tend to gather to forage or travel collectively. Avian flocks are typically associated with migration. Flocking also ...
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Not a migrantAnimals that do not make seasonal movements and stay in their native home ranges all year round are called not migrants or residents.
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starts withThe Pied kingfisher has, as its name suggests, black and white plumage. The male has a black crest and crown, a white stripe above its eye, a larger black stripe across the eye as far as its neck, and a white throat and collar. Its upper parts are black, edged in white, giving a mottled effect and its rump has black and white streaks. The wing coverts have white spots. The underparts are white, with two lines of fine black bars, the upper being wider and usually broken in the middle. The bill is black and long and looks like a dagger. The eyes are dark brown and the feet and legs are blackish. The female has just one breast band, which is narrower than that of the male. The tail is white and somewhat long, its median tail feathers and tips being black, and it fans out in flight.
Pied kingfishers live in the Middle East, sub-Saharan Africa, the Asian mainland, and southern China. In sub-Saharan Africa, they are common along the Nile, and in east Egypt, and in Pakistan they are frequently found across the Sind plains and Punjab. They are rare in Greece, Cyprus, and Poland. These birds do not migrate and live beside streams, lakes, estuaries, rivers, irrigation ditches, canals, floodplains, bays, and reedy inlets. They also live in river valleys near mountainous areas.
Pied kingfishers are usually found in pairs or small family groups and form large roosts at night. They are diurnal, often perching during the day beside streams in order to conserve energy. They will also perch on manmade structures such as fences, huts, and canoes. When perched, they often bob their head and flick up their tail. Pied kingfishers usually hunt by hovering over the water to detect prey and diving vertically bill-first to capture fish. When not foraging, they have a straight rapid flight and have may fly at nearly 50 km/h. As they fly, they emit noisy chirps, and they also make these sounds during nesting to mark territory.
Pied kingfishers are carnivores (piscivores). They mainly eat fish, and sometimes aquatic insects, frogs, amphibians, crustaceans, and mollusks.
Pied kingfishers are monogamous and form pairs. They breed from February to April. Courtship involves displays of dancing, which are carried out by 3 to 12 males together. Males also offer food to females over a period that lasts about three weeks. Both the male and the female help to dig a nest hole in the soft earth of a bank, above water, or sometimes in a grassy ground. A burrow will be dug to a depth of about one meter. The breeding season extends from February to April. 4 to 5 white shiny eggs are laid and are incubated by both parents for about 18 days. While the nest is being dug and during laying and the incubation period, the male bird displays and brings food for the female then helps to raise the chicks before they fledge. The fledglings stay in the nest for about 3 weeks and become reproductively mature when they are one year old.
In Nigeria, these kingfishers are tamed as pets, becoming tame after one week. After that, they are free to follow children about, whereupon some go back to the wild. Some birds may be eaten in this area as well. They may benefit from fish farming and human dams but they are at risk of being poisoned by bioaccumulation of toxins in the fish they eat.
According to All About Birds resource, the total breeding population of the Pied kingfisher at 1.7 million individuals. Overall, currently, this species is classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List.
Pied kingfishers are major fish predators. There is evidence for a relationship with clawless otters that is mutualistic.
Social animals are those animals that interact highly with other animals, usually of their own species (conspecifics), to the point of having a rec...