PLEASE! If you see any mistakes, I'm 100% sure that I have wrongly identified some birds.
So please let me know on my guestbook at the bottom of the page
Black-capped Kingfisher, Halcyon pileata, นกกะเต็นหัวดำ

The Black-capped Kingfisher (Halcyon pileata) is a tree kingfisher which is widely distributed in tropical Asia from India east to China, Korea and Southeast Asia. This most northerly of the Halcyonidae is resident over much of its range, but northern populations are migratory and they wintering south of their range to Sri Lanka, Thailand, Borneo and Java. It is distinctive in having a black cap that contrasts with the whitish throat, purple blue wings and the coral red bill. The species is mainly found in coastal and mangrove habitats but can sometimes be found far inland.

Distribution and habitat
The species is found mainly near the coast in mangrove forests and along estuaries and rivers. The distribution ranges from India (including the Andaman and Nicobar Islands where they occur even on remote islands like Narcondam), Sri Lanka, Kansu, Shansi, Korea, Malay Peninsula, Thailand, Burma, Ryu kyu Islands, Hainan, Philippines (Palawan, Balabac, Basilan, Tawi Tawi), Borneo, Sumatra east to Sulawesi where it occurs only in winter. Vagrants in winter have been recorded in Pakistan while movements related to rainfall may lead to their being found far inland and away from their usual distribution.

Black-capped Kingfisher, Halcyon pileata, นกกะเต็นหัวดำ

Ornithological Portal Oiseaux.net
Range map from www.oiseaux.net - Ornithological Portal Oiseaux.net
www.oiseaux.net is one of those MUST visit pages if you're in to bird watching. You can find just about everything there

Taxonomy
The black-capped kingfisher was described by the French polymath Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon in his Histoire Naturelle des Oiseaux in 1780. The bird was also illustrated in a hand-coloured plate engraved by François-Nicolas Martinet in the Planches Enluminées D'Histoire Naturelle which was produced under the supervision of Edme-Louis Daubenton to accompany Buffon's text.

Neither the plate caption nor Buffon's description included a scientific name but in 1783 the Dutch naturalist Pieter Boddaert coined the binomial name Alcedo pileata in his catalogue of the Planche Enluminées. The type locality is China. The present genus Halcyon was introduced by the English naturalist and artist William John Swainson in 1821. Halcyon is a name for a bird in Greek mythology generally associated with the kingfisher. The specific epithet pileata is from the Latin pileatus meaning "-capped". The species is monotypic.

Description
This kingfisher is about 28 centimetres long. The adult has a purple-blue wings and back, black head and shoulders, white neck collar and throat, and rufous underparts. The large bill and legs are bright red. In flight, large white patches or "mirrors" at the base of the primaries are visible on the blue and black wings. Sexes are similar, but juveniles are a duller version of the adult and show streaks on the throat. The call of this kingfisher is a cackling ki-ki-ki-ki-ki.

Listen to the Black-capped Kingfisher


Usually seen on coastal waters and especially in mangroves, it is easily disturbed, but perches conspicuously and dives to catch fish but also feeds on large insects. The flight of the black-capped kingfisher is rapid and direct, the short rounded wings whirring.

The breeding season is in summer. The nest is a tunnel in an earth bank. A single clutch of 4-5 round white eggs is typical.

A subspecies palawanensis has been described but the species is considered to be monotypic with no clear plumage differences across their range.

In culture
Like many other kingfishers, this species was much sought for the blue feathers for their use in the millinery trade. Feathers were used in making fans in China. In Hong Kong, their feathers were cut and glued over ornaments used by women.

Conservation status
Black-capped Kingfisher, Halcyon pileata, นกกะเต็นหัวดำ
Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)
IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2013.2.
International Union for Conservation of Nature. Retrieved 26 November 2013.



From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

www.birdforum.net


Sighted: (Date of first photo that I could use) 3 January 2016
Location: Suan Rot Fai, Bangkok

Thank's to Nick Upton at www.thaibirding.com for HOT birding tip. His web page is a ONE STOP for everything you need for bird watching in Thailand. There are reviews of the birding sites with maps and information.

And if you like Nick Upton's web page you will also like www.norththailandbirding.com I have used this page together with Nick Upton's page when planning my birding tours. Excellent reviews and information about the birding sites.

I also got the Thai names of the birds from www.norththailandbirding.com. There is a bird check list with all the names in English and Thai. And of course also the Scientific Name. Down load the birdlist in Microsoft Excel format at www.norththailandbirding.com Or down load the Excel sheet by clicking HERE

PLEASE! As I'm a first time birdwatcher bear in mind that some of the bird can be wrongly named. I have bought book and I confirm on the internet to get the right identity on the birds I take pictures off. But there can still be mistakes.


Black-capped Kingfisher, Halcyon pileata, นกกะเต็นหัวดำ
Black-capped Kingfisher - นกกะเต็นหัวดำ - 12 February 2016 - Bang Pu, Bangkok

Black-capped Kingfisher, Halcyon pileata, นกกะเต็นหัวดำ
Black-capped Kingfisher - นกกะเต็นหัวดำ - 12 February 2016 - Bang Pu, Bangkok

Black-capped Kingfisher, Halcyon pileata, นกกะเต็นหัวดำ
Black-capped Kingfisher - นกกะเต็นหัวดำ - 25 November 2016 - Suan Rot Fai, Bangkok

Black-capped Kingfisher, Halcyon pileata, นกกะเต็นหัวดำ
Black-capped Kingfisher - นกกะเต็นหัวดำ - 25 November 2016 - Suan Rot Fai, Bangkok

Black-capped Kingfisher, Halcyon pileata, นกกะเต็นหัวดำ
Black-capped Kingfisher - นกกะเต็นหัวดำ - 25 November 2016 - Suan Rot Fai, Bangkok

Black-capped Kingfisher, Halcyon pileata, นกกะเต็นหัวดำ
Black-capped Kingfisher - นกกะเต็นหัวดำ
29 March 2022 - eBird hotspot: Praek Nam Daeng

Black-capped Kingfisher, Halcyon pileata, นกกะเต็นหัวดำ
Black-capped Kingfisher - นกกะเต็นหัวดำ
29 March 2022 - eBird hotspot: Praek Nam Daeng



PLEASE! If I have made any mistakes identifying any bird, PLEASE let me know on my guestbook



       
                  



                                       
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