14

Sacred Kingfisher (Todiramphus sanctus) Alternate name(s): "Wood Kingfisher", "Tree Kingfisher", "Green Kingfisher"; MISNOMER: "Forest Kingfisher *" Aboriginal name(s): Race "sanctus": "ding-ding" [western bundjalung]; "panpan yatjuk" [tjapwurrung], "taiRing-taiRing" [eastern djadjawurrung]; "koonyenok", "djok" (WA); "rool" (Bird of Death) Size: 20-23 cm; wing span 29-33 cm Body mass: 30-60 g

Australia: Family Group 14 Family Group 14 Table Australian Swiftlet Pacific Swift White-throated Needletail Buff-breasted Paradise-Kingfisher Yellow-billed Kingfisher Azure Kingfisher Little Kingfisher Forest Kingfisher Red-backed Kingfisher Torresian Kingfisher Sacred Kingfisher Blue-winged Kookaburra Laughing Kookaburra Rainbow Bee-eater Dollarbird Thumbnails page Family group table Index of bird names Habitat pages Key plants Birds home page

Similar species

Description     Classification     Distribution     Sightings     Photos     Breeding     Nest     Eggs     Behaviour     Food     Call/s

Physical description Click here for a physical description Sacred Kingfishers are relatively small kingfishers. They have two buff patches in front of their eyes, a turquoise-green cap and prominent black eye stripes that connect at the nape of the neck. The throat and sides of the neck are white, the nape of the neck, under the black band, is often buff-tinted, but can also be near-white. The front (chest, belly, vent, undertail coverts) is light-buff, darkening slightly downwards. The mantle is dark-grey, tapering to turquoise (rump, uppertail and upperwings). Male Sacred Kingfishers tend to have a more blueish/turquoise back, while females are greener. The irises of both sexes are black, the bill is dark-grey, with a light-grey base of the lower mandible. The legs and feet are grey. Juvenile Sacred Kingfishers have a buff-tinted, scalloped front and neck. Twitcher's tip Sacred Kingfishers can be quite hard to distinguish from Forest Kingfishers. The loral spots (in front of the eyes) of Sacred Kingfishers are always buff, while the ones in Forest Kingfishers are always white. In-flight, Forest Kingfishers have a white spot on their wings that Sacred Kingfishers do not have. Compared to Collared Kingfishers, Sacred Kingfisher are smaller and have less colour contrast in their body plumage, the front being buff and the back lighter turquoise-green than a Collared Kingfisher's.

Taxonomy, classification See Sacred Kingfisher at Wikipedia .

Range, habitat, finding this species Click here for information on habitat and range The overall distribution of this species can be assessed, and specific locations where birds have been spotted can be found, based on individual sighting reports submitted by birdwatchers to ebird.org . The global distribution of the Sacred Kingfisher is available HERE . There are 4 races of Sacred Kingfishers, with a range extending from Indonesia (central Java, Borneo), via Timor Leste, New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, New Caledonia and Fiji, to Australia and New Zealand. In Australia only nominate race "sanctus" is found. They are mostly breeding migrants to Australia from the North, making landfall anywhere along the North coast of the continent, from the Kimberley, WA, in the West to Cape Melville, QLD, in the East. The largest population breeds in the eastern half of QLD and NSW, plus all of VIC and the south-eastern corner of SA. There are breeding colonies in the Top End of the NT and along the coast of WA (in various areas, but mostly the south-western corner). Outside their breeding season Sacred Kingfishers disperse into most of the Australian continent, except the most arid parts (basically the great sandy deserts from the Nullarbor to South of the Kimberley, i.e. most of eastern WA, a part of western SA and of the south-western NT). Outside the breeding season they are also found in Tasmania. Sacred Kingfishers are also present on Lord Howe Island and Norfolk Island. Sacred Kingfishers are found in a variety of habitats, from coastal woodlands and mangroves to eucalypt forests, often near water courses. Sacred Kingfishers are also found on many offshore islands, including coral atolls along the Great Barrier Reef. They adapt quite well to the presence of humans and can be found in gardens and urban parks as well. Where to look? How to find this species? Sacred Kingfishers are most easily spotted when hunting from low to mid-level perches, such as e.g. fenceposts or low branches of trees. Their strident call can be heard over long distances. Their appearance is that of a squat little bird with a huge bill.

Sightings Click here for sighting information Race "sanctus" Our first sighting of a Sacred Kingfisher, race "sanctus", was in September 2006, 20 km South of Narrabri, NSW. During the breeding season they can be found reliably also in other locations throughout inland NSW. Outside the breeding season they become scarce, but some individuals usually overwinter in inland NSW. Sacred Kingfishers, race "sanctus", are also regularly seen by us, and reported to us, on the eastern side of the Great Dividing Range, in both NSW and QLD. A Sacred Kingfisher, race "sanctus", was spotted by C. Kellenberg on Lord Howe Island in July 2010. R. Plumtree reports finding Sacred Kingfishers, race "sanctus", at Ensay South, East Gippsland, VIC, in October 2013. They were found nesting in the same area in November 2016. P. Brown reports finding a Sacred Kingfisher, race "sanctus", at Lake Argyle, near Kununurra, WA, in April 2018, and at Keep River NP, NT, in November 2018. D. Dyer reports finding Sacred Kingfishers, race "sanctus", only during their migration in Cervantes, WA, for short periods of time each year, for example in October 2014. M. Eaton found a Sacred Kingfisher, race "sanctus", at Buffalo Creek, Darwin, NT, in July 2020, and at Stanage Bay, QLD, in July 2021. Others were found at Streeters Jetty, Broome, WA, in July 2026.

Photos

Race "sanctus"

ADULT

PAIR

Many bird species exhibit sexual dimorphism, i.e., male and female have differing appearances which can be quite subtle.
Individual Sacred Kingfishers are quite difficult to sex in the field. This becomes even harder when, even in a pair seen together, one has fresh, the other worn plumage. Males, left, have a blue back; females are more turquoise-green.

Near-frontal/ventral view of a pair of Sacred Kingfishers - male in fresh plumage on the left, female in worn plumage on the right; the sexes can unambiguously be determined using a dorsal view of the male, which shows clarly the blue hue of its upperparts - both birds sit on a perch in front of their nest hollow in an arboreal termite mound (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Anstead Reserve, Anstead, QLD, December 2019]

Close-up frontal/dorsal view of a pair of Sacred Kingfishers, male on the right
[Yarrie Lake, NSW, October 2025]

Lateral/dorsal view of a pair of Sacred Kingfishers - male on the right, female on the left
[Near Narrabri, NSW, October 2014]

MALE

Close-up frontal view of a male Sacred Kingfisher
[Mungindi, QLD, January 2023]

Close-up near-frontal view of a male Sacred Kingfisher; note the bluish hues typical of a male and the buff-coloured collar and eye patches distinguishing it from a Forest Kingfisher (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Wynnum Wetlands, Brisbane, QLD, August 2017]

Close-up near-frontal view of a male Sacred Kingfisher looking sideways - note the badly worn plumage
[Mungindi, QLD, January 2023]

Close-up near-lateral view of a male Sacred Kingfisher in fresh plumage (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Lady Musgrave Island, near Agnes Water, QLD, September 2017]

Close-up near-lateral view of a male Sacred Kingfisher in worn plumage (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Cooroy, QLD, December 2017]

Near-lateral view of a male Sacred Kingfisher that looks almost like a Forest Kingfisher, but note the characteristic rufous patch in front of the eye
[Narrabri, NSW, September 2010]

"THAT's a lookout!" - Close-up lateral view of a male Sacred Kingfisher on its favourite perch
(photo courtesy of J. Boettcher, FNQ Nature Tours)
[Daintree River, QLD, August 2024]

Lateral view of a male Sacred Kingfisher in fresh plumage (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Durikai State Forest, near Warwick, QLD, September 2017]

Close-up lateral view of a male Sacred Kingfisher - note the badly worn plumage
[Mungindi, QLD, January 2023]

Lateral view of a male Sacred Kingfisher (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Wynnum, QLD, December 2017]

Lateral views of a male Sacred Kingfisher; inner eyelid closed, left, eyelid open, right (photos courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Sandy Camp Wetlands, Brisbane, QLD, March 2018]

Lateral view of a male Sacred Kingfisher (photos courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Stanage Bay, QLD, July 2021]

Lateral view of a male Sacred Kingfisher looking away from the observer; when seen from this angle, it is easily confused with a female Forest Kingfisher (photos courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Stanage Bay, QLD, July 2021]

Near-dorsal view of a male Sacred Kingfisher looking back at the observer (photos courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Sandy Camp Wetlands, Brisbane, QLD, September 2018]

Dorsal view of a male Sacred Kingfisher looking sideways that resembles very closely a Forest Kingfisher; only the buff-coloured collar and eye patches give away its true ID
[Eulah Creek, NSW, November 2013]

In this dorsal view of a male Sacred Kingfisher the similarity with a Forest Kingfisher is even more pronounced
[Eulah Creek, NSW, November 2013]

FEMALE

Close-up near-frontal view of a female Sacred Kingfisher looking at the observer (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Streeters Jetty, Broome, WA, July 2026]

Close-up near-frontal view of a female Sacred Kingfisher (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Streeters Jetty, Broome, WA, July 2026]

Close-up near-frontal view of a female Sacred Kingfisher looking sideways; note the more turquoise hues on the back, rather than the blue found in males (above)
[Yarrie Lake, near Wee Waa, NSW, February 2022]

Close-up lateral view of a female Sacred Kingfisher (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Streeters Jetty, Broome, WA, July 2026]

Lateral view of a female Sacred Kingfisher (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Pullenvale, QLD, October 2023]

Near-dorsal view of a female Sacred Kingfisher looking sideways (photo courtesy of C. Kellenberg)
[Lord Howe Island, July 2010]

Near-dorsal view of a female Sacred Kingfisher looking sideways; note the typical turquoise-greenish colour
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Priors Pocket Road, Moggill, QLD, October 2021]

Near-dorsal view of a female Sacred Kingfisher looking sideways (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Cooroy, QLD, December 2017]

Dorsal view of a female Sacred Kingfisher looking sideways (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Buffalo Creek, Darwin, July 2020]

Near-dorsal view of a female Sacred Kingfisher issuing its call (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Priors Pocket Road, Moggill, QLD, October 2021]

Near-dorsal view of a female Sacred Kingfisher with buff tinges indicating fresh plumage; the scalloping on the wings indicates that this bird may still be moulting (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Deception Bay, QLD, February 2018]

Dorsal view of a female Sacred Kingfisher (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Noosa, QLD, December 2017]

Dorsal view of a female Sacred Kingfisher (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)

"Noli me tangere!" Female Sacred Kingfisher adopting a threatening posture against a female Australasian Figbird
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Noosa, QLD, December 2017]

Sex unknown

3 species of insect-eating migratory birds: Sacred Kingfisher, left, Dollarbird, centre, Rainbow Bee-eater, right
[Near Eulah Creek, NSW, October 2018]

This contributed photo shows in detail a wing of a Sacred Kingfisher (a cat got the rest of the bird...)

IMMATURE/JUVENILE

Frontal view of a stunned immature (probably female) Sacred Kingfisher after a run-in with a window pane
(photo courtesy of G. Mathewson)
[Banyo, QLD, March 2016]

Lateral view of a stunned immature (probably female) Sacred Kingfisher after a run-in with a window pane
(photo courtesy of G. Mathewson)
[Banyo, QLD, March 2016]

Full-frontal view of a juvenile Sacred Kingfisher - note the vermiculation on the chest
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Wynnum Wetlands, QLD, April 2018]

Frontal view of a juvenile Sacred Kingfisher looking sideways (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Inskip Point, QLD, December 2017]

Close-up frontal portrait of a juvenile Sacred Kingfisher looking sideways
[Eulah Creek, NSW, March 2024]

Near-lateral view of a juvenile Sacred Kingfisher looking towards the observer
[Eulah Creek, NSW, February 2017]

Near-frontal view of a juvenile Sacred Kingfisher looking sideways
[Eulah Creek, NSW, February 2017]

Near-frontal view of a juvenile Sacred Kingfisher looking sideways; this individual has a deformed bill
(photo courtesy of P. Brown)
[Lake Argyle, near Kununurra, WA, April 2018]

Near-lateral view of a juvenile Sacred Kingfisher (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Wynnum Wetlands, QLD, April 2018]

Lateral view of a juvenile Sacred Kingfisher (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Wynnum Wetlands, QLD, April 2018]

Lateral view of a juvenile Sacred Kingfisher (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Lake Broadwater, near Dalby, QLD, January 2018]

Near-dorsal view of a juvenile Sacred Kingfisher looking sideways (photo courtesy of R. Druce)
[Maules Creek, NSW, February 2012]

Near-dorsal view of a juvenile Sacred Kingfisher looking sideways
[Inverell, NSW, January 2017]

Dorsal view of a juvenile Sacred Kingfisher; note the white spot above the black crescent
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Cairns, QLD, July 2018]

Stand-off between a juvenile Sacred Kingfisher and a Willie Wagtail (photo courtesy of R. Druce)
[Maules Creek, NSW, February 2012]

Close-up near-frontal view of a very young Sacred Kingfisher looking sideways
[Yarrie Lake, near Wee Waa, NSW, January 2026]

Close-up frontal view of a fledgling Sacred Kingfisher; the chest is still soiled, probably from leaving the nest hollow; this bird's begging calls were recorded on 7 Feb. 2025
[Yarrie Lake, near Wee Waa, NSW, February 2025]

Breeding information

Breeding season: Sep - Jan

Eggs: 3 - 6

Incubation period: 17 - 18 days

Fledging age: 26 - 28 days

Pair of Sacred Kingfishers working on the next generation (photo courtesy of R. Plumtree)
[Doctors Flat Road, Ensay South, East Gippsland, VIC, October 2013]

Nest

"bungobittah", "lar", "malunna", "jindi" [bundjalung] = nest [Aboriginal]

Type: Tree hollow, arboreal termite mound, or tunnel, with basket

Material: ?

Height above ground: 0 - 25 m

Male Sacred Kingfisher in fresh plumage, with the female entering the nest hollow in an arboreal termite mound
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Anstead Reserve, Anstead, QLD, December 2019]

Female Sacred Kingfisher in worn plumage, with the male entering the nest hollow in an arboreal termite mound
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Anstead Reserve, Anstead, QLD, December 2019]

Close-up dorsal view of a male Sacred Kingfisher in worn plumage entering its nest hollow in an arboreal termite mound
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Anstead Reserve, Anstead, QLD, December 2019]

Sacred Kingfisher leaving its nest (photo courtesy of R. Plumtree)
[Cape Conran Nature Reserve, VIC, November 2016]

Opening of a Sacred Kingfisher nest tunnel in a steep creek bank (photo courtesy of D. Johnston)
[Baradine area, NSW, February 1988]

Amazingly, although still totally naked and blind, these Sacred Kingfisher hatchlings are not in the nest chamber, but right at the tunnel entrance begging for food (photo courtesy of D. Johnston)
[Baradine area, NSW, February 1988]

Entrance to the nest hollow of a pair of Sacred Kingfishers
[20 km South of Narrabri, NSW, 2005]

Eggs

"boyanga", "booyanga", "derinya", "dirandil", "koomura", "mirk", "ngampu", "nooluk", "pateena", "pum-pum" = Egg; "dirundirri" = eggs [Aboriginal]; "gawu" = eggs [gamilaraay]

Size: 25 x 22 mm

Colour: White

Shape: Rounded

Behaviour

Social behaviour: Territorial

Mobility: Partially migratory

Elementary unit: Solitary/pair

While most migrate, some Sacred Kingfishers stay to spend the winter months in the south-eastern parts of the Australian continent.

Together with other birds marking the boundaries of their territory by calling from vantage points, we noticed that the local pair of Sacred Kingfishers was quiet for two days during a late cold snap in late October 2008.

Some bird species, including Sacred Kingfishers, are quite adaptable in choosing where they hunt. The photo below is of a juvenile bird that was seen around our place in March 2009. There were no parents around to teach the bird its tactics and it was clearly too young to have made earlier experiences in previous seasons. It hunted from a gate, just outside the reach of a sprinkler, in an area where insects disturbed by the water were crawling into drier areas.

Sacred Kingfisher using the disturbance created by a lawn sprinkler to pick off insects crawling away; the bird sat about 50 cm outside the range of the sprinkler
[Eulah Creek, NSW, March 2009]

Female Sacred Kingfisher diving to catch its prey and subsequently returning to its perch in the manner of a "true kingfisher"
[20 km South of Narrabri, NSW, October 2006]

Sacred Kingfishers take prey with undigestible parts, such as e.g. fur; here one regurgitating a pellet, left, and spitting it out, right (photos courtesy of R. Druce)
[Maules Creek, NSW]

Lateral view of a female Sacred Kingfisher evading an attack by a mob of Noisy Miners by jumping onto the hand of a human, getting carried inside the house, before being released again on the opposite side of the house...
(photo courtesy of A. Ross-Taylor)
[Ashmore, Gold Coast, QLD, January 2025]

Male Sacred Kingfisher making use of a bird bath (photo courtesy of D. Dyer)
[Cervantes, WA, October 2014]

Food, Diet

Like other kingfishers, Sacred Kingfishers prey on small fish and yabbies, which they catch diving into water. However, they are known to hunt primarily on land for small reptiles, large insects (e.g. bush cockroaches) and spiders. We have seen a juvenile Sacred Kingfisher take a female Silken Orb Weaver spider.

Lateral/ventral view of a Sacred Kingfisher with its catch - a big, fat, juicy spider
[Eulah Creek, NSW, October 2013]

Gulp...!
[Eulah Creek, NSW, October 2013]

Sacred Kingfisher with its prey, a cicada (photos courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Moggill, QLD, January 2023]

Do you like your meal battered or crumbed? (photos courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Sandy Camp Wetlands, Brisbane, QLD, March 2018]

Battered...? (photos courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Sandy Camp Wetlands, Brisbane, QLD, March 2018]

Ready to serve... (photos courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Sandy Camp Wetlands, Brisbane, QLD, March 2018]

Female Sacred Kingfisher sreaking away like greased lighting with its prey (photo courtesy of R. Druce)
[Minnon State Forest, NSW, October 2019]

Sacred Kingfisher with its prey, a grasshopper
[Eulah Creek, NSW, January 2020]

Oops, mistake! Juvenile Sacred Kingfisher mistaking a roo pellet for a bush cockroach...
[Eulah Creek, NSW, March 2019]

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.

sacking_20171027.m4a	sanctus (NW NSW)	Contact call (male)	© MD
sacking_20250825.m4a	sanctus (NW NSW)	Contact calls (male)	© MD
sacking_20141016_3.mp3	sanctus (NW NSW)	Contact calls (slow)	© MD
sacking_20141026.mp3	sanctus (NW NSW)	Contact calls (quick)	© MD
sacking_20150123.mp3	sanctus (NW NSW)	Contact calls (immature)	© MD
sacking_20240928.m4a	sanctus (NW NSW)	Contact calls (Q&A)	© MD
sacking_20231115.m4a	sanctus (NW NSW)	Q&A	© MD
sacking_20191221.m4a	sanctus (NW NSW)	Alarm calls (pair swooping on goanna)	© MD
sacking_20181113_3.m4a	sanctus (NW NSW)	Alarm calls (goanna) + Striped Honeyeater	© MD
sacking_20211210.m4a	sanctus (NW NSW)	Annoyed	© MD
sacking_20250207.m4a	sanctus (NW NSW)	Begging calls (fledgling)	© MD
sacking_20181113.m4a	sanctus (NW NSW)	?	© MD

We have also been able to record wing beats of a Sacred Kingfisher.

sacking_20231203.m4a

sanctus (NW NSW)

Departure from bath (wet)

© MD

More Sacred Kingfisher sound recordings are available at xeno-canto.org .

These pages are largely based on our own observations and those of our contributors. The structure of these bird pages is explained HERE. For more salient facts on any bird species please refer to a field guide.

Would you like to contribute photos or sound recordings to this site? If interested, please CLICK HERE. Credits to contributors are given HERE.