Alternative name: Scaly Kingfisher
- Actenoides princeps
Identification
24–25 cm (9½-10 in)
Male
- Blue head
- Buffish to rufous tinged colour
- Brown back with buffy scalloping
- Finely barred pale underparts
Distribution
Sulawesi endemic. South East Asia: Indonesia: Greater Sundas.
Taxonomy
Subspecies
There are 3 subspecies[1]:
- A. p. princeps:
- Humid montane forests of north-eastern Sulawesi
- A. p. erythrorhamphus:
- Humid montane forests of north-western and central Sulawesi
- A. p. regalis:
- Humid montane forests of south-eastern Sulawesi
Habitat
Both primary and secondary hill and montane forests, generally between 900–2000 m, occasionally lower.
Behaviour
Diet
Although little detailed information is available, they are known to eat beetles, cicada nymphs and small lizards.
Breeding
They lay their 4 eggs in an excavated tunnel in an earth bank. There is little other information available.
Gallery
Click on photo for larger image
Photo © by James Eaton
Gunung Ambang, Sulawesi, Indonesia, September 2004
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2018. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2018. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved May 2018)
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2023) Scaly-breasted Kingfisher. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 30 November 2023 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Scaly-breasted_Kingfisher