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Tropical North Queensland, Australia.
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AZURE KINGFISHER


Photo: C & D Frith
Wet Tropics Rainforest Life

AZURE KINGFISHER: Alcedo azurea 18 cm

  •   In Australia the Azure Kingfisher occurs widely on watercourses and lakes in the north and east that have densely vegetated margins.

  •   Mostly it is seen skimming over the water in rapid flight, or plunging for small fishes from a low perch.

  •  Its call is high pitched and difficult to hear.

  •  The nest is a hole in a bank close to the water's edge. 

  •  Around Chambers Wildlife Rainforest Lodge it is present on watercourses in the rainforest, and at Lake Eacham.

Additional Information: Environmental Protection Agency

  • Courting azure kingfishers may appear as flashes of blue zig-zagging along streams and rivers as they prepare to produce the next generation.

  • The nest is built in a chamber at the end of a one-metre tunnel which both sexes help to excavate into the stream bank.

  • This chamber is lined with fish scales, bones and crustacean shells and four to seven rounded white eggs are laid.

  • This is a common type of egg for birds nesting in holes.

  • They do not need to be pointed because they are not going to roll away and the white colour makes them visible to the parent birds in the gloomy chamber.

  • This lovely bird lives up to its name. It is indeed a most glorious colour of blue (the word azure is derived from the Persian word for the semi-precious stone lapis lazuli).

  • Unlike many other kingfishers which feed on land, it frequents streams and rivers, perching above the water and diving down when a suitable fish appears.

  • It also eats crustaceans and aquatic insects.

Script: Courtesy of Environmental Protection Agency


Photo: Courtesy of Damon Ramsey

Additional Information: Damon Ramsey

The Azure Kingfisher is one of the most beautiful of all kingfishers, coloured a bright blue with rufous underparts. It is usually found near water, where it perches on tree branches waiting for movement. It often performs a peculiar movement, bobbing with its head and lifting its tail as it waits. In flight it can be very fast and direct, and may hover when hunting, plunging down for a quick splash as it grabs its prey.
Script: Courtesy of Damon Ramsey

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Chambers Wildlife Rainforest Lodges
Lake Eacham, Atherton Tablelands
Tropical North Queensland, Australia.
PH & Fax: 07 4095 3754 International: 61 7 4095 3754

http://www.rainforest-australia.com/accommodation


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