On Monday at Occoquan Regional Park, I was thrilled to capture some shots of this male Belted Kingfisher (Megaceryle alcyon) as he flew by me overhead. Kingfishers are really skittish and quite often I am aware of their presence of these speedy little birds when I hear their rattling call as they fly away from me. This kingfisher, however, flew across my field of view, which allowed me to track it and focus on it as it passed.
How do I know this is a male kingfisher? Normally male birds are more colorful than their female counterparts, but that is not true for Belted Kingfishers—females have a chestnut-colored band across their chests that the males do not have.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 