v10i1.251

ISSN: 1800-427X (print)
eISSN: 1800-427X (online)
DOI:10.47605/tapro.v10i1.251

Submitted date: 22 April 2021
Accepted date: 17 May 2021
Published date: 27 May 2021
Pp. 64–65, pls. 13–14.

Unusual nesting behaviour of white-throated kingfisher (Halcyon smyrnensis)

T.G.S.L. Prakash, S. Jayakody, A.G.K. C. Perera, R. Gamage & T.G.T. Kusuminda
*E-mail: prakashtgsl@gmail.com

The white-throated kingfisher or white-breasted kingfisher, Halcyon smyrnensis is a common breeding resident found throughout Asia. Both sexes are alike; juveniles are duller than the adults. They breed yearly from January to August in pairs, but the breeding season begins earlier in India and Sri Lanka. The most active period of breeding related activities is from April to July. Deep burrows (about 50 cm to 1 m) are dug by mating birds into a vertical embankment or wall for the construction of nests. They are common in agricultural landscapes, swamps, marshes, near ponds, lakes, parklands, mangrove swamps, and gardens. However, we have observed a nest of white-throated kingfisher in an artificial nest box towards the end of December 2020 in Moratuwa, Sri Lanka, the first documented record of such breeding behaviour in Sri Lanka and throughout its range. This note highlights the key observations made.

Section Editor: Vincent Nijman