New Britain Dwarf-Kingfisher
Ceyx sacerdotis
A small kingfisher with deep purplish-blue upperparts and fiery orange underparts with a white neck spot and bright orange legs. Bill is blackish-red above and purer red below, but appears entirely red in the field. Prefers mature and dense secondary forest, often perching low. No other dwarf-kingfisher shares its range. Told from Common Kingfisher by smaller size and red rather than black bill. Call apparently nearly identical to that of other Melanesian dwarf-kingfishers: a high-pitched, weak repetitive whistle, often given in flight.
Identification
A small kingfisher with deep purplish-blue upperparts and fiery orange underparts with a white neck spot and bright orange legs. Bill is blackish-red above and purer red below, but appears entirely red in the field. Prefers mature and dense secondary forest, often perching low. No other dwarf-kingfisher shares its range. Told from Common Kingfisher by smaller size and red rather than black bill. Call apparently nearly identical to that of other Melanesian dwarf-kingfishers: a high-pitched, weak repetitive whistle, often given in flight.
Taxonomy
Genus: Ceyx; Family: Alcedinidae; Order: Coraciiformes.
- Scientific name
- Ceyx sacerdotis
- Authority
- Ramsay, EP, 1882
- Order
- Coraciiformes
- Family
- Alcedinidae
- Genus
- Ceyx
Range and habitat
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
Migration pattern: Resident species.
Conservation
Population trend: declining.
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Other Birds
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Tahiti Monarch
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A distinctive large glossy-black flycatcher with a pale bluish-ivory bill. Female has a cinnamon head, a buffy chest, white underparts and brown upperparts. Dependent on native moist forest between 80 and 400 meters of elevation. Song is strong, loud, complex, and melodious, with a repeated “wip-woorly” phrase.
White-throated Oxylabes
Oxylabes madagascariensis
Mid-sized tetraka with a bold white throat and eye-stripe. Brown on the back, rufous on the underparts, and bright rufous on the cap. Madagascar endemic that is found in low- and middle-elevation eastern and northern rainforest. Skulking but restless understory bird that prefers dense tangles. Sometimes joins mixed flocks. Common vocalizations are a quick, thrush-like up-and-down series, and a low, accelerating rattle.
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