Australian Museum:
The Azure Kingfisher plunges from overhanging perches into water to catch prey. Prey items include: fish, crustaceans, aquatic insects and other invertebrates, and, sometimes, frogs. They will often bash their prey against the perch before swallowing it head first. Often watch Platypuses foraging underwater and catch any food items that are disturbed.
Saw this little guy, a cousin of the kookaburra and only three of four inches high, on the South Alligator River in Kakadu National Park. Several times he'd dart down, be back up on the limb and have his food down almost faster than you could see.
Damn that's a funky bird! Whole lotta beak. I can see how that little guy could make quick work of a frog.
ReplyDeleteHe looks so tiny!
ReplyDeleteI know, I always thought of kingfishers as pretty huge birds - but there are about 90 species. And you can see how they kinda look like kookaburras.
ReplyDelete