According to figures from the British Trust for Ornithology, there are only about 6,400 pairs of Kingfishers in Britain, so it is not surprising that any appearance, whether on that suitably placed post outside a bird hide or flashing along a river, feels like a real bonus for a birdwatcher.  There can be fewer birds that are easier to identify; the electric blue back is obvious in even the briefest of glimpses and the rich red of the chest catches the sunlight quite wonderfully.  Those lucky enough to see a bird really close up will see that the green of the head is bejewelled with spots of blue.  Kingfishers are surprisingly small birds, measuring just 16cm in length and weighing only 40 grammes, about the same length as a greenfinch and only 10 g heavier.

Kingfishers are very susceptible to cold weather, with numbers crashing after winters with long periods of freezing conditions.  According to figures from the BTO’s Waterways Bird Survey, numbers have recovered to the levels of the mid-1970s, having dipped after each of the 1979 and 1982 winters.  Kingfishers do not generally migrate, although they may move further down-stream from upland areas in the autumn.  Like Grey Herons and Grey Wagtails, the species has responded well to the clean up of our waterways, with birds now appearing in many of our city parks and rivers.

The arrival of a Kingfisher in a garden may be seen as a mixed blessing for people who stock their ponds with goldfish, but the preferred prey is smaller and more slender than goldfish, consisting of bullhead, minnows, loach or immature fish such as roach.  Fish can be taken from a depth of up to a metre, either by diving from a low perch, usually between one and three metres above the water, or after hovering above the surface of the water.  According to one study, the success rate when hovering is higher – but it must be harder work too. 

Visits to garden ponds are most likely to occur in the late summer, when young Kingfishers are dispersing.  Sadly, the BTO receives quite a few reports of birds that have collided with windows or fallen prey to cats.  The typical Kingfisher does not move very far –  about five miles – but some birds ringed by trained BTO ringers have ventured further, including a handful of movements into continental Europe.  There is a suggestion that birds from further north in Britain may move longer distances, a behavioural adaptation that would fit with the need to avoid cold weather. 

Another name for Kingfisher is ‘Halcyon’, a word that we now take to mean calm, peaceful and happy.  According to legend, Halcyons used to create floating nests and the sea remained calm during hatching.  In fact, Kingfishers dig nests in the banks of rivers and conditions in the nests are far from idyllic.  With up to seven youngsters raised in a confined space on a diet of fish, it is not surprising that a new nest is built for each of the two, three or four broods raised during the summer.