Subject: Re: Kingfisher behavior
Date: Nov 8 00:12:37 1996
From: Janet Hardin - wings at olympus.net


Scott Richardson, in response to my observation and question about
kingfishers, asked

>> The birds appeared to be an adult male and female

>Appeared to be? Did the "female" have her rusty belt on?

She sure did!

> I'm curious mainly because I see only male kingfishers during winter at
>East Bay, Olympia. Females are present only from the end of April to early
>October. There was a Natural History article a decade or so back that
>described migration of females while males remained on the breeding
>grounds.

This is interesting, and news to me. Guess I'll be paying closer attention
from now on, and perhaps check my old field notes. Over the years I've
taken a casual approach to learning more about kingfishers, but have been
frustrated by difficulties in locating references. I just read Bent this
morning, and when I read the accounts of migration and ranges, reflected
that I'm glad we live in an area conducive to their staying year-round.
There was no mention of a different migration/wintering status between the
two sexes.

> Sorry I'm no help here, Janet.

Thanks for trying! You've taught me something new and piqued my curiosity,
and I'm grateful.

Cheers,

Janet Hardin
Port Townsend, WA
wings at olympus.net