Forest Kingfisher Todiramphus macleayii Scientific name definitions

20 cm; male 32–43 g, female 29–44 g. Smallish kingfisher with blue-and-white plumage. Male nominate race has prominent white loral spot, dark blue crown, black ear-coverts , white collar, paler blue upperwing-coverts and tail; prominent white wing spot in flight; white underparts ; bill black above, lower mandible has pinkish-brown basal half and blackish-brown distally ; iris dark brown; legs and feet greyish black. Female has dark blue hindneck, buffy flanks . Juvenile  has buff loral spot, breast and belly, blues duller, buff edges to crown and wing-coverts. Race <em>incinctus</em> has greener back  , scapulars and tertials, smaller white wing spot; elizabeth has darker blue upperparts, almost lacking any green tinge (1 Fry, C. H., K. Fry, and A. Harris (1992). Kingfishers, Bee-eaters and Rollers. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ).

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Editor's Note: Additional distribution information for this taxon can be found in the 'Subspecies' article above. In the future we will develop a range-wide distribution article.

Forest bordering swamps, monsoon forest, wet Melaleuca forest, mangroves, open eucalypt (Eucalyptus) forest, also forest edges and clearings, wooded swamps and creeks, screw-pine (Pandanus) savanna; also lightly wooded country including farmland, pasture, cropland, and suburban parks and gardens. Highest densities in N Australia in mixed riparian open forest, followed by tall closed swamp-forest, then tall dense grassland-forest. Migrants of race incinctus occupy humid habitats, forest clearings and edges in Papua New Guinea. In S Australia much more common below 200 m, but in N has wider altitudinal range, and up to 1700 m in Papua New Guinea.

Race elizabeth in Papua New Guinea resident; nominate race in Northern Territory also resident or partial migrant, and probable that some of that population move N to Sermata and Aru Is after breeding, although this needs confirmation. E Australian population incinctus is a partial breeding migrant S of Tropic of Capricorn, some birds arriving in S Queensland in Sept–Oct and leaving Mar–Apr, but others remaining all year; in N Queensland present all year, supplemented in autumn and spring by passage birds, and in winter may be more common in coastal lowlands. Clear passage in Cape York Peninsula and islands in Torres Strait, but extent varies annually; non-breeding migrants found in S Moluccan archipelagos of Kai, Tanimbar and Banda Is (2 Moores, L., C. Healey, and S. (B.) van Balen, (1996). Additions to the avifauna of the Banda Islands, Maluku. Kukila 8:127–131. Close ), and from R Mimika in Irian Jaya through S Papua New Guinea to New Britain and, rarely, New Ireland and Solomon Is (Kolombangara); possibly migrates in family units, since groups of six seen in SE New Guinea. Possibly also some local seasonal movements; recorded as vagrant in E Victoria.

Diet comprises wide range of invertebrates  , including grasshoppers (Acrididae), stick-insects (Phasmida), cockroaches (Blattodea), beetles (Chrysolopus, Heteronychus), ants (Formicidae), bugs (Hemiptera), cicadas (Cicadidae), adult and larval butterflies, dragonflies (Aeshna), spiders  (Lycosa), worms (Lumbricidae); also small vertebrates, including fish (Gambusia), frogs and tadpoles, lizards (Scincidae, Agamidae), and snakes. Watches from perch on high bare branch or wire; plunges to the ground or water’s edge to seize animal in bill (sally-pouncing), then returns to perch. Large items are beaten hard and repeatedly against perch, this often removing wings and elytra of insects, before being swallowed. Also takes prey from low vegetation, foliage, branches, tree trunks, and in air. In study in Kakadu National Park (Northern Territory), 56% of foraging was by sally-pounce, 43% by sally-strike (22% from foliage, 7% from ground, 5% from tree trunks, 8% from air), and 1% by plunging into water; 81% of dives were successful.

“High Rolling Call” a repeated high-pitched “pee-pee-pee”  , by male in display; “Machine Gun Call” short bursts of rapidly repeated notes; also harsh, strident “scissor-weeya, scissor-weeya” chatter, soft repeated “seet” notes in flight, also short sharp click, and loud scream; “Attack Call” a short harsh “chtzaa”; “Grizzle” a soft, buzzing “grzzz”; young very vocal with begging call like the adult grizzle.

Lays in Jan in Papua New Guinea, in Sept–Dec in Northern Territory, in Aug–Feb in Queensland, and in Oct–Dec in New South Wales; usually single-brooded in Northern Territory, but may rear two broods elsewhere. Often breeds as simple pair, but up to three helpers may assist. Territorial, migrants return to same territory in consecutive years. Male displays by sitting upright on a post, drooping wings, fanning and cocking tail, and calling vigorously, bill pointing skywards; male and female bow the head, spread wings, raise tail, and pirouette side by side on perch. Nest excavated by both adults, assisted by any helpers, usually in arboreal termitarium of Nasutitermes, sometimes in natural tree hollow or in soil between roots of fallen tree, once excavated in a clump of staghorn ferns (Polypodium), and usually 4–12 m above ground, rarely more than 15 m; short inclined tunnel to nesting chamber, latter 23 cm in diameter. Clutch 3–6 eggs, usually 4–5; both parents incubate, possibly also helpers if present, incubation period c. 18 days, possibly 21 days; all also feed the young; a brood of two nestlings fed on 12–20 fish, frogs and lizards daily, but rejected insects; at one nest three helpers brought nearly four times as much food as the two parents; fledging period 27–31 days; adults feed fledglings for at least one month, then feeding rate declines. 75% of eggs hatched, and 50% of nestlings fledged; nests robbed by olive pythons (Liasis olivaceus) and goannas (Varanus); some young died in nest with injuries suggesting siblicide, and nestlings sometimes harmed by infestations of scavenger moths.

Not globally threatened. Widespread, and found in a range of habitats. Density of 0·4 birds/ha in Kakadu National Park; elsewhere in Northern Territory densities of 0·07–0·96 birds/ha, highest in mixed riparian open forest. In winter 1960, 1900 birds were counted along 160 km of road in N Queensland. Clearance of woodland for development has affected some populations, and a number of individuals are killed in collisions with windows and lighthouses.