Go and See the King

There is a Belted Kingfisher visiting the Governor Ames Estate. Kingfishers are in decline across their range, but they are by no means rare. I usually see one or two a year (compare that to 10 zillion English sparrows). Casual walkers have been mistaking the King for a Blue Jay, but the King's blue is bluer and his enormous beak and noisy chatter is distinctive. I'm saying he because the bird looks like the fellow above. Girl Belted Kingfishers have two belts across their chest, one a thin red one, the other blue.

Pete Dunne in his Essential Field Guide Companion calls the Kingfisher the Aqua Kestrel because this bird flies over ponds or hovers 20 or 30 feet over water before diving headfirst like a Kestrel into the water to catch little fish.

I've seen the bird at the new Trustees of Reservation's property for about two weeks, but I've yet to see him make a dive. He's been fishing both Shovel Shop Pond and the little pond on the opposite side of the mansion. Both ponds are loaded with little fish so I'm a little concerned we might be hosting a juvenile who doesn't know the ropes.

If he is a juvenile, he has had an interesting life already. His parents had mated for life and had worked for up to two weeks to dig a tunnel into a riverbank.  Most Kingfisher tunnels go up inside the bank. If a flood occurs the chicks have a chance to survive in the air pocket in the upward part of the tunnel. After Mom lays her eggs in the tunnel, the pair take turns incubating them. Dad gets the day shift while Mom gets to keep the eggs warm and sleep at night. This lovely scene of domesticity does not extend to housekeeping; Kingfishers don't clean their nests like many other birds. Things get worse when the babies hatch because they are fed regurgitated partly digested fish. Leftovers are not refrigerated so the tunnel must get really smelly. Not a problem for the birds who have a very poor sense of smell. Once the fledglings emerge from the tunnel they go to fishing school. Mom and Dad drop dead fish on the water until Junior gets the idea of diving for dinner.

The Kingfisher at Ames is making a lot of noise that sounds nothing like a Blue Jay. It has been described as a "scratchy chattering rattle." Kingfishers can become pretty tame around people often fishing in golf course ponds, but they are very territorial. Our Kingfisher is making noise when people come within a hundred feet. Because of their territoriality, Kingfishers are reluctant migraters. With global warming you might see Massachusetts birds throughout the year with winter birds defending holes in the ice.

Let me know if you see this guy make a splash!