Number 1. Common Kingfisher – Alcedo athis.

 it has been very wet this last 36 hours and we have floods which is not very pleasant and makes birdwatching and photography a bit difficult. I was looking at my galleries of Kingfishers and realised that I have taken photographs of 13 different species of Kingfishers. I have posted them here for you to compare.

Number 2. Pied Kingfisher -  Ceryle rudis

This one was photographed in Cape Town South Africa but I have also photographed them in both Gambia and Sri Lanka.

Number 3 Giant Kingfisher -  Megaceryle maxima 

Photographed in Gambia but I have also seen this species in South Africa, this one is a male.

Number 4. White throated Kingfisher -  Halcyon smyrnensis  

This is a very common and quite noisy kingfisher in Sri Lanka where this photograph was taken.

Number 5. Belted Kingfisher - Megaceryle alcyon

The common North American Kingfisher.  This one is a male, the female has a patch of rusty red on the belly.  They are not easy to get close to in my experience but this one was photographed from my car at a truck stop in the Everglades National Park just after dawn in March.

Number 6 Malachite Kingfisher - Corythornis cristatus.

A very small kingfisher that looks quite similar to the Common Kingfisher but is even more intensely marked.  Getting a photograph of this bird was probably one of my most satisfying birding experiences because I had failed on several trips previously.  

Sri Lanka Common Kingfisher – Albedo athis taprobana