Belted Kingfishers (Megaceryle alcyon) are one of my nemesis birds. They are small and fast and incredibly skittish. I see (or hear) them quite often, but I am rarely able to get a decent shot of one.
I spent a good amount of time last Friday at Huntley Meadows Park observing a male Belted Kingfisher trying to catch a fish. He was perched on some kind of board sticking out of the water and repeatedly dove into the water and returned to the same post. Eventually he caught a fish, but, alas, flew away with it before I could get a shot of him with his catch.
Unlike an eagle that grabs a fish with its talons without submerging itself, a kingfisher dives headfirst into the water, creating a big splash. According to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, “When it spots a fish or crayfish near the surface, it takes flight, dives with closed eyes, and grabs the prey in its bill with a pincer motion. Returning with its prize, it pounds the prey against the perch before swallowing it head first.”
I was perched on am observation platform some distance away, but had a clear line of sight to the kingfisher. Over time I was able to capture some relatively sharp shots of the kingfisher in action. The first shot is my favorite—the kingfisher was rising up out of the water, surrounded by water droplets, after what appeared to have been an unsuccessful attempt.
The second photo shows the kingfisher on its perch. I am not sure why this board was sticking out of the water, but noted several similar boards nearby. The subsequent images show the kingfisher in various stages of action. I was fortunate that the kingfisher made several attempts, sometimes diving to the left and sometimes to the right, so I had multiple chances to get shots. Actions shots are a tough, but fun challenge. The kingfisher would take off without warning and after it dove into the water, I was never sure exactly when and where he would reemerge.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
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Mike Powell 