Animal Pictures Archive mobile
Query: Southern small whiteResult: 92nd of 556
American Pygmy Kingfisher (Chloroceryle aenea) - Wiki
Subject: American Pygmy Kingfisher (Chloroceryle aenea) - Wiki
h13550pi-American Pygmy Kingfisher, Chloroceryle aenea.jpg
Resolution: 349x153 File Size: 7879 Bytes Upload Date: 2008:02:01 17:39:47

American Pygmy Kingfisher (Chloroceryle aenea) - Wiki


American Pygmy Kingfisher
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Order: Coraciiformes
Family: Cerylidae

[Photo] American Pygmy Kingfisher, Chloroceryle aenea. Photo: Chan Robbins. Source: USGS (www.mbr-pwrc.usgs.gov/id/mexlist1.html)

The American Pygmy Kingfisher, Chloroceryle aenea, is a resident breeding bird which occurs in the American tropics from southern Mexico south through Central America to western Ecuador, and then around the northern Andes cordillera in the east to central Bolivia and central Brazil. The species occupies the entire Amazon Basin and the Tocantins River drainage adjacent in Pará state Brazil. It also occurs on Trinidad.

This tiny kingfisher occurs in dense forests and mangroves along small streams or rivers with heavily vegetated banks. The unlined nest is in a horizontal tunnel up to 40 cm long made in a river bank, earth heap, or occasionally an arboreal termite nest. The female lays three, sometimes four, white eggs.

The American Pygmy Kingfisher is 13 cm long and weighs 18g. It has the typical kingfisher shape, with a short tail and long bill. It is oily green above, with a yellow-orange collar around the neck, rufous underparts and a white belly. The female has a narrow green breast band. Young birds resemble the adults, but have paler rufous underparts, no breast band, and speckled wings and flanks. It gives a weak tik or stony cht cht call.

There are two recognised subspecies of American Pygmy Kingfisher. The nominate southern C. a. aenea has two lines of white spots on the wings, and northern C. a. stictoptera has three or four lines of spots and a concealed white patch of feathers on the undertail. The two forms intergrade in central Costa Rica.

American Pygmy Kingfishers perch quietly on a low branch close to water before plunging in head first after small fish or tadpoles. They will also hawk for insects. They are quite tame, but easily overlooked as they sit silently amongst riverside branches.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Pygmy_Kingfisher
The text in this page is based on the copyrighted Wikipedia article shown in above URL. It is used under the GNU Free Documentation License. You may redistribute it, verbatim or modified, providing that you comply with the terms of the GFDL.

Southern small white
92/556
| Mobile Home | New Photos | Random | Funny | Films | Korean |
^o^ Animal Pictures Archive for smart phones ^o^