Green Kingfisher

Overview

Green Kingfisher: Small kingfisher, dark green head, back, and wings, white chin, collar, rufous breast band, white belly with black spots. Black bill is long and straight. Legs and feet are gray. Feeds mostly on small fish taken in dives and aquatic insects, amphibians. Direct flight.

Range and Habitat

Green Kingfisher: Uncommon and local in southern Texas; rare to casual in southeastern Arizona; has recently begun nesting locally in south Arizona, spreading north from Mexico. Preferred habitats include small, clear streams, quiet pools, and backwaters.

INTERESTING FACTS

The Green Kingfisher was first described in 1788 by Johann Friedrich Gmelin, a German naturalist, botanist and entomologist.
They are smaller than other kingfishers and lack blue-gray coloration.
A group of green kingfishers are collectively known as a "clique" and a "concentration" of kingfishers.

The Green Kingfisher has a large range, estimated globally at 16,000,000 square kilometers. The bird is native to the Americas and prefers a forest, wetland or marine ecosystem, though it has been known to live in urban areas or in canals or ditches. The population is estimated globally at 5,000,000 to 50,000,000 individuals. The population does not show signs of decline that would necessitate inclusion on the IUCN Red List. Because of these population trends, the current evaluation level of the Green Kingfisher is Least Concern.