[order] CORACIIFORMES | [family] Alcedinidae | [latin] Chloroceryle americana | [UK] Green Kingfisher | [FR] Alcyon vert | [DE] Grunfischer | [ES] Martin Pescador Verde | [NL] Groene IJsvogel
Subspecies
| Genus | Species | subspecies | Breeding Range | Breeding Range 2 | Non Breeding Range |
| Chloroceryle | americana | NA, LA | sw USA to n Argentina | ||
| Chloroceryle | americana | americana | n South America east of the Andes, Trinidad and Tobago | ||
| Chloroceryle | americana | cabanisii | Colombia to Chile west of the Andes | ||
| Chloroceryle | americana | hachisukai | sc USA and nw Mexico | ||
| Chloroceryle | americana | mathewsii | s Brazil, Bolivia and n Argentina | ||
| Chloroceryle | americana | septentrionalis | sc Texas (USA) and e Mexico south to n Colombia and w Venezuela |
Physical charateristics
Males have white neck collar, oily green upperparts with white markings on wings and tail. White underparts apart from a broad chestnut breast band and some green spotting on the flanks. Females have buff-white underparts with two green chest bands, the lower of which links to the green spotting along the sides of the belly.
Listen to the sound of Green Kingfisher
[audio:http://www.aviflevoland.nl/sounddb/G/Green Kingfisher.mp3]
Copyright remark: Most sounds derived from xeno-canto
| wingspan min.: | 0 | cm | wingspan max.: | 0 | cm |
| size min.: | 20 | cm | size max.: | 21 | cm |
| incubation min.: | 21 | days | incubation max.: | 22 | days |
| fledging min.: | 27 | days | fledging max.: | 22 | days |
| broods: | 1 | eggs min.: | 3 | ||
| eggs max.: | 4 |
Range
North America, Latin America : Southwest USA to North Argentina
Habitat
The Green Kingfisher inhabits watercourses and shores, from the brackish water of mangrove-fringed lagoons to mountain streams 7000 feet above the sea. The two extremes of habitat are the exception, however; it prefers smaller rivers and streams and quiet pools of lowlands.
Reproduction
Nest is a unlined chamber at the end of tunnel exacavated by both sexes in a rvierbank. The tunnel is steep about 2 meters above water and 30-100 cm long. Clutch size is 3 sometimes 4 eggs incubated by female at night and by male at daytime for at least 21 days. Young fledge after about 27 days and will be fed for about a month afterwards.
Feeding habits
Hunts for fish and crustaceans mostly at dusk and dawn. Perches low above water and dives head first. Feeds also on water insects.
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 increasing, 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 extremely 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
Distribution map
