Amazon Kingfisher
[order] CORACIIFORMES | [family] Alcedinidae | [latin] Chloroceryle amazona | [UK] Amazon Kingfisher | [FR] Alcyon de l’Amazone | [DE] Amazonasfischer | [ES] Martin Pescador Amazonico | [NL] Amazone-ijsvogel
Subspecies
| Genus | Species | subspecies | Breeding Range | Breeding Range 2 | Non Breeding Range |
| Megaceryle | amazona | ||||
| Chloroceryle | amazona | LA | c Mexico to c Argentina |
Physical charateristics
It is 29-30 cm long and weighs 110g. It has the typically kingfisher shaped, with the short tail and long bill. Upperparts are oily green above, with a shaggy crest and a white collar around the neck. It is lacking the white markings on the wings shown by Green Kingfisher. Males have white underparts apart from a broad chestnut breast band and some green streaks on the flanks. Females have white underparts with green patches on the side of the chest and green flank streaks. Young birds resemble the adult female, but have white spots on the wings.
Listen to the sound of Amazon Kingfisher
[audio:http://www.aviflevoland.nl/sounddb/A/Amazon Kingfisher.mp3]
Copyright remark: Most sounds derived from xeno-canto
| wingspan min.: | 0 | cm | wingspan max.: | 0 | cm |
| size min.: | 29 | cm | size max.: | 31 | cm |
| incubation min.: | 21 | days | incubation max.: | 22 | days |
| fledging min.: | 29 | days | fledging max.: | 22 | days |
| broods: | 1 | eggs min.: | 3 | ||
| eggs max.: | 4 |
Range
Latin America : Central Mexico to Central Argentina
Habitat
Large slow flowing river bodies, estuaries and wooded lagoons. In Suriname common in urban places with tree patches and a suitable amount of water surface with dense vegetation.
Reproduction
Monogamous. The unlined nest is a horizontal tunnel made in a river bank, up to 1.6 m in length long and 10 cm in width. Both parents exacavate the tunnel which is used for several consecutive years. Clutch is 3-4 eggs incubated female at night and by male in daytime for about 22 days. This species does not clean the nest of feaces and food and it may be invested by flies and maggots. parents often leave nest tunnel backwards and then tumble in to water for bathing. Young leave nest after 29-30 days. Replaces first clutch when lost.
Feeding habits
Hunts for fish and crustaceans mostly at dusk and dawn. Perches low above water and dives head first, hardly ever submerges in full. Sometimes following egrets for any
prey they disturb.
prey they disturb.
Conservation
This species has an extremely large range, and hence does not approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the range size criterion (Extent of Occurrence <20,000 km2 combined with a declining or fluctuating range size, habitat extent/quality, or population size and a small number of locations or severe fragmentation). The population trend appears to be stable, and hence the species does not approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the population trend criterion (>30% decline over ten years or three generations). The population size is very large, and hence does not approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the population size criterion (<10,000 mature individuals with a continuing decline estimated to be >10% in ten years or three generations, or with a specified population structure). For these reasons the species is evaluated as Least Concern.
Migration
Sedentary throughout range, although vagrantshave been reported from Trinidad.
Distribution map
