Gray-headed Kingfisher (Halcyon leucocephala)

Despite the name, the grey-headed kingfisher does not feed on fish, but instead thrives on a wide variety of insects, such as grasshoppers, cockroaches and beetles, and occasionally takes small vertebrates such as lizards (3) (8). Like other kingfishers, this species generally sits still on a perch, before diving steeply down to the ground in pursuit of prey (6) (8). The nest, which is excavated by both sexes, consists of a tunnel up to a metre long, dug into a riverbank, gully or termite mound (2) (8). Egg-laying occurs between September and December, with three to four eggs incubated by both parent birds for around 20 days (8).

Rights Holder: Wildscreen