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Azure KingfisherAlternate name(s): "Blue Kingfisher", "Water Kingfisher", "River Kingfisher", "Purple Kingfisher" ![]() Size: 17-19 cm Weight: 25-50 g |
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Photos |
Race "azurea"
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ADULT |
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PAIR |
Frontal view of a pair of Azure Kingfishers on their perch
[Near Barraba, NSW, September 2015]
Sex unknown |
Frontal view of an Azure Kingfisher
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Gold Creek Reservoir, QLD, February 2019]
Frontal view of an Azure Kingfisher looking sideways
(photo courtesy of J. Boettcher, FNQ Nature Tours)
[Daintree River, QLD, May 2020]
Near-frontal view of an Azure Kingfisher with its head turned sideways
(photo courtesy of R. Plumtree)
[Swan Reach, East Gippsland, VIC, August 2018]
Close-up near-lateral view of an Azure Kingfisher
(photo courtesy of J. Boettcher, FNQ Nature Tours)
[Daintree Village, QLD, November 2019]
Near-lateral view of an Azure Kingfisher
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Gold Creek Reservoir, QLD, February 2019]
Near-lateral view of an Azure Kingfisher
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Hillview Court Reserve, Dayboro, QLD, May 2020]
Close-up near-lateral view of an Azure Kingfisher with a
hitchhiker on its head
(photo courtesy of J. Boettcher, FNQ Nature Tours)
[Daintree River, QLD, November 2019]
Near-lateral view of an Azure Kingfisher
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Brunswick Heads, NSW, January 2019]
Close-up lateral view of an Azure Kingfisher in brilliant sunlight
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Brunswick Heads, NSW, January 2019]
Close-up lateral view of an Azure Kingfisher
(photo courtesy of J. Boettcher, FNQ Nature Tours)
[Daintree River, QLD, November 2019]
Lateral view of an Azure Kingfisher
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Brunswick Heads, NSW, January 2019]
Lateral view of an Azure Kingfisher
(photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)
[Cape Tribulation, Daintree NP, QLD, March 2015]
Near-dorsal view of an Azure Kingfisher
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Hillview Court Reserve, Dayboro, QLD, May 2020]
Near-dorsal view of an Azure Kingfisher
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Gold Creek Reservoir, QLD, February 2019]
Near-dorsal view of an Azure Kingfisher with its head turned sideways
(photo courtesy of R. Plumtree)
[Swan Reach, East Gippsland, VIC, August 2018]
Close-up dorsal view of an Azure Kingfisher looking sideways
(photo courtesy of J. Boettcher, FNQ Nature Tours)
[Daintree Village, QLD, November 2019]
Close-up dorsal view of an Azure Kingfisher
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Brunswick Heads, NSW, January 2019]
Dorsal view of an Azure Kingfisher
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Brookfield, Brisbane, QLD, December 2017]
Lateral view of an Azure Kingfisher in flight
(photo courtesy of R. Druce)
[Near Moree, NSW, June 2012]
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IMMATURE/JUVENILE |
Lateral view of a juvenile Azure Kingfisher; note the white
tip of the bill
(photo courtesy of E.
Scott)
[Kilcoy, QLD, December 2016]
This immature Azure Kingfisher is not only wet from a dive, but also
moulting (photo courtesy of E.
Scott)
[Kilcoy, QLD, December 2016]
Race "ruficollaris"
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ADULT |
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PAIR |
Near-dorsal view of a pair of Azure Kingfishers
(photo courtesy of M. Mearns)
[Boodjamulla (Lawn Hill) NP, QLD, November 2012]
Sex unknown |
Near-lateral view of an Azure Kingfisher
(photo courtesy of P. Brown)
[Kakadu NP,
NT, November 2020]
Lateral view of an Azure Kingfisher perched characteristically
in a shady spot low above water in a
mangrove in an
intertidal wetland
(photo courtesy of P. Brown)
[Rapid Creek, Darwin, NT, October 2018]
Lateral view of an Azure Kingfisher; this is probably the bird whose
calls were recorded
on 18 August 2014
[Umbrawarra Gorge,
NT, August 2014]
Near-dorsal view of an Azure Kingfisher
(photo courtesy of P. Brown)
[Rapid Creek, Darwin, NT, October 2018]
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IMMATURE/JUVENILE |
Near-frontal view of a juvenile Azure Kingfisher; note the
pale tip of the bill (photos courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Sandy Creek, Stuart Highway, NT, July 2018]
Near-frontal view of a juvenile Azure Kingfisher; note the
pale tip of the bill and the still incomplete flight
feathers
(photos courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Sandy Creek, Stuart Highway, NT, July 2018]
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Breeding information |
Breeding season: Oct - Dec | Eggs: 4 - 6 | Incubation period: ca. 21 days | Fledging age: ? |
Depending on geographic latitude and weather conditions, the breeding season can run from September to February. Numbers listed for the fledging age of young Azure Kingfishers range from about 3 weeks up to 5 weeks.
Nest building: ? | Incubation: Female & male | Dependent care: Female & male |
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Nest |
"bungobittah", "lar", "malunna", "jindi" [bundjalung] = nest [Aboriginal] |
Type: Tunnel | Material: Bare soil | Height above ground: N/A |
Azure Kingfisher (race "azurea") coming out of the entrance of its nest
in a river bank
(photo courtesy of C. Hayne)
[Terry Hie Hie, NSW, November 2013]
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Eggs |
"boyanga", "booyanga", "derinya", "dirandil", "koomura", "mirk", "ngampu", "nooluk", "pateena", "pum-pum" = Egg; "dirundirri" = eggs [Aboriginal]; "gawu" = eggs [gamilaraay] |
Size: 22 x 19 mm | Colour: White | Shape: Rounded |
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Behaviour |
Social behaviour: Territorial? | Mobility: Sedentary/partly migratory | Elementary unit: Pair |
Azure Kingfishers are known for their swift, straight flight very low above water. Once a bird was seen by us almost skimming the surface of a creek.
This Azure Kingfisher was found hunting in unusually open terrain
(photos courtesy of J. Greaves)
[Horizontal Falls, Cyclone Creek, Talbot Bay, WA, April 2015]
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Food, Diet |
Like other kingfishers, Azure Kingfishers prey on small fish and crustaceans, which they catch diving into water.
There is a separate page describing (superficially) the workings of an Azure Kingfisher's digestion.
Lateral view of an Azure Kingfisher with its prey, a fish
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Brunswick Heads, NSW, January 2019]
Lateral view of an Azure Kingfisher with its prey, a fish
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Brunswick Heads, NSW, January 2019]
Lateral view of an Azure Kingfisher with its prey, a fish
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Brunswick Heads, NSW, January 2019]
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Call(s)/Song |
For this species we have recorded the following call(s)/song. The
interpretation of their meaning is our own;
comments and suggestions for improvement are welcome.
azkingf_20140818.mp3 |
ruficollaris (Top End, NT) |
Contact calls (male in flight) | © MD | |
azkingf_pb_20210302.m4a |
ruficollaris (Top End, NT) |
? (+ others in bkgd) | © PB |
More Azure Kingfisher sound recordings are available at
xeno-canto.org
.