the white-throated kingfisher (halcyon smyrnensis) also known as the white-breasted kingfisher or smyrna kingfisher , is a tree kingfisher , widely distributed in eurasia from bulgaria , turkey , east through south asia to the philippines .
this kingfisher is a resident over much of its range , although some populations may make short distance movements .
it can often be found well away from water where it feeds on a wide range of prey that includes small reptiles , amphibians , crabs , small rodents and even birds .
during the breeding season they call loudly in the mornings from prominent perches including the tops of buildings in urban areas or on wires .
this is a large kingfisher , 28 cm in length .
the adult has a bright blue back , wings and tail .
its head , shoulders , flanks and lower belly are chestnut , and the throat and breast are white .
the large bill and legs are bright red .
the flight of the white-throated kingfisher is rapid and direct , the short rounded wings whirring .
in flight , large white patches are visible on the blue and black wings .
sexes are similar , but juveniles are a duller version of the adult .
this species forms a superspecies with halcyon cyanoventris and most major works recognize four geographic races .
they vary clinally in size , the shades of blue on the mantle which is more greenish in smyrnensis and fusca and more blue or purplish in saturatior .
h .
s .
gularis of the philippines has only the neck and throat white .
race fusca is found in peninsular india and sri lanka and is slightly smaller , bluer and with a darker brown underside than the nominate race found in northwestern india .
race saturatior is found in the andaman islands and is larger with darker brown underparts .
race perpulchra (not always recognized) is found in northeastern india and is smaller than fusca with paler underparts .
albinism has been noted on occasion .
the english of white-throated was introduced since the range is large and geographic adjectives would make the name too restrictive , while the older name of white-breasted would not describe the eastern race which has only the throat white .
the call of this kingfisher is a chuckling chake-ake-ake-ake-ake .
they are particularly noisy in the breeding season .
local names include baluchistan: aspi chidok; sindhi: dalel; hindi: kilkila , kourilla;himachal pradesh: neela machhrala; punjabi: wadda machhera; bengali: sandabuk machhranga; assamese: masroka; cachar: dao natu gophu; gujarati: kalkaliyo , safedchati kalkaliyo; marathi: khandya; tamil: vichuli; telugu: lakmuka , buchegadu; malayalam: ponman; kannada: rajamatsi; sinhalese: pilihuduwa .
white-throated kingfisher is a common species of a variety of habitats , mostly open country in the plains (but has been seen at 7500 ft in the himalayas) with trees , wires or other perches .
the range of the species is expanding .
this kingfisher is widespread and populations are not threatened .
average density of 4.58 individuals per km2. has been noted in the sundarbans mangroves .
it perches conspicuously on wires or other exposed perches within its territory , and is a frequent sight in south asia .
this species mainly hunts large crustaceans , insects , earthworms , rodents , snakes , fish and frogs .
predation of small birds such as the oriental white-eye , chick of a red-wattled lapwing , sparrows and munias have been reported .
the young are fed mostly on invertebrates .
in captivity , it has been noted that it rarely drinks water although bathing regularly .
the white-throated kingfisher begins breeding at the onset of the monsoons .
males perch on prominent high posts in their territory an call in the early morning .
the tail may be flicked now and in its courtship display the wings are stiffly flicked open for a second or two exposing the white wing mirrors .
they also raise their bill high and display the white throat and front .
the female in invitation makes a rapid and prolonged kit-kit-kit .
call .
the nest is a tunnel (50 cms long , but a nest with a 3 foot tunnel has been noted) in an earth bank .
the nest building begins with both birds flying into a suitable mud wall until an indentation is made where they can find a perch hold .
they subsequently perch and continue digging the nest with their bills .
nest tunnels in a haystack have also been recorded .
a single clutch of 4-7 round white eggs is typical .
the eggs take 2022 days to hatch while the chicks fledge in 19 days .
birds have sometimes been seen attracted to lights at night , especially during the monsoon season , suggesting that they are partly migratory .
with a powerful bill and rapid flight , these kingfishers have few predators when healthy and rare cases of predation by a black kite and a jungle crow may be of sick or injured birds .
an individual found dead with its beak embedded into the wood of a tree has been suggested as an accident during rapid pursuit of prey , possibly an oriental white-eye .
a few parasites have been noted .
in the 1800s these birds were hunted for their bright feathers that were used to adorn hats .
