Yesterday, the last day of January, I set out for a small pond, hoping to see a female Belted Kingfisher who hangs out there. I didn’t have high hopes that I would see her and thought the pond probably would be frozen. I was happy to discover that the pond was only partially frozen over and thrilled when I hear the unmistakable call of a Belted Kingfisher (Megaceryle alcyon).
Before I could get in range, the kingfisher flew into a tree that was a good distance away, adjacent to the wall of an elevated section of railroad tracks. The tan color in the first photo is that wall. After I had observed her for a few moments (and she seemed to be observing me), she flew a little higher in the trees and I took the second shot. The colorful design was painted on a railroad tanker car.
I am still hoping that I will be able to get some closer shots of this kingfisher, but I was quite pleased to be able to capture these images of one of my favorite birds.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
Your Belted Kingfisher looks so cool! I love the mohawk hairdo 😀 Great captures, Mike!
Good catch — kingfishers can be very skittish!
They do have such character…Love the subject you chose for your photos.
Crazy hair!
With that kind of hair, I always expect to see body piercings or at least tattoos.
One of those birds I never seem to get quite close enough to for a great shot.