white throated kingfisher at yishun ave 1

when i visited wilsons promontory in australia, i kept looking out for the laughing kookaburra, one of the heaviest kingfishers in the world. i was told it was commonly sighted, especially near the visitor's centre. i saw a number of rosellas but no kookaburra. a rosella is a species of colourful australian parrot.

back in singapore, i was walking towards the fishing jetty at lower seletar reservoir when i saw this colourful kingfisher on the pavement. it is not the common kingfisher but like all kingfishers it has a large head, a long, sharp pointed bill, short legs and a stubby tail. found out that it was a white throated kingfisher.

a white throated kingfisher has a large red bill. its head, shoulders and underparts are rust coloured. the back, wings and tail are blue. its identifying mark is its characteristic white throat and upper chest. the wings also have white patches but these are visible only when it flies.

white-throated kingfishers are adaptable predators and will dive into the water to capture aquatic prey like fish, crabs, and amphibians or will plunge into the grass and undergrowth to capture terrestrial prey like large insects and invertebrates, small reptiles, rodents, and baby birds.

kingfishers are found throughout the world.