Did you know that even though some members of the same family may actually be related, there may be a single member representing an entire gender? This is the case of the Glittering Kingfisher. Get ready to meet him!
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What is their habitat?
It is known by the scientific name of caridonax fulgidus and is the only member of the genus caridonax. It belongs to the halcyonidae family and is endemic to Indonesian.
It is mainly distributed in most of the smaller islands of the Probe, the northern ones. Their natural habitat is usually the wet forests from which they can obtain their food, close to large water sources.
Would it be easy to recognize?
It is a bird that measures about 30 cm and can weigh between 400-435 grams. There are no records of sexual dimorphism in the species, although the female appears to be slightly larger than the male.
Their heads are bluish black, as are their backs, wings, lower tails and tail tips. On the other hand, his throat, chest and underparts are whitish. Its name comes from the fact that the lower back and the base of the tail are white, with the brief presence of dark wings. Its beak and legs are orange in colour.
Two subspecies have been recognized:
- Caridonax fulgidus fulgidus: The nominal subspecies that was discovered by Gould in 1857 on the western islands of Sonda.
- Caridonax fulgidus gracilirostris: This is found on the island of Flores, Besar and Andonara, in the central area of Sonda.
There’s not a lot of information about its life at liberty
The truth is that there is little information about his life at liberty. It is known to feed on insects and larvae, very rarely eating any small lizards. Insects usually hunt them on the fly, but they can come down to the ground to dig up larvae using their beaks.
Reproduction would take place in March, but in Flores it could occur in January. It appears to be a monogamous species. They live alone until they have found a partner to spend most of their lives with. If one of them dies, they will look for another partner to continue the reproduction.
The female will lay between two and five eggs once a year. Incubation is a process that will be in charge of this, while the male will bring you food. The chicks will take about 30 days to hatch. Once born, they will remain with their parents for at least four weeks until they learn to fend for themselves and hunt on their own. Some may take up to two months to leave the nest or stay with their parents to help them raise in the coming years.
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