birdWatch

Kingfishers 2/3

Alcedinidae: Halcyon leucocephala (Grey-headed Kingfisher)

Alcedinidae: Halcyon senegalensis (Woodland Kingfisher)

The Grey-headed Kingfisher is about 20cm in length. It is a dry country bird, and eats insects and lizards. It was seen in the lodge garden at Amboseli.

The Woodland Kingfisher is about 23cm in height. it  was seen in the lodge garden at Maasai Mara. It eats mainly insects, but also fish, shrimp and frogs.

These two species can be mistaken for each other, but the colour of the belly and the bill (black underneath in the Woodland) tells them apart. The Grey-headed Kingfisher is fairly widely distributed, while the Woodland Kingfisher is much more localised in the west.

Kenya Bird Index