It’s been a long and tiring week, most of it spent happily outdoors chasing spring migrants.  My first excursion was north to the Bruce Peninsula, where I spent a morning at Isaac Lake wildlife sanctuary.  Being only May, and being mid-week, I had the entire reserve to myself — to wander the gravel road that passes through the marsh and seek out breeding birds.

As I returned to my car down by the bat boxes, a Belted Kingfisher swooped past with a dry rattle, landing in a nearby willow overhanging the water.  The bird’s slatey blue and white plumage immediately identified him as a male.  For once, it is the female, with her rusty belly band, that gives the species its name (an example of reverse sexual dimorphism).  I’ve often wondered if her more colourful plumage is in fact misinterpreted my human observers as such, with the ‘belt’ serving a more practical purpose (breaking up her form, perhaps), or if the male is indeed more colourful to avian eyes (most birds can see colours well into the ultraviolet spectrum, and many seemingly dull species are known to blaze in ultraviolet light).  But a look at the other two North American kingfishers — the Ringed and the Green — seems to dispell this, as in both species it is the males that sport rusty feathers (or at least, in the case of the Ringed Kingfisher, more extensive rusty colouration).

Belted Kingfishers are common birds along waterways throughout North America, and will remain in the same area year round if the water remains open.  Their nest is located at the end of a burrow, which can be up to fifteen feet deep and is excavated by the birds themselves in a suitable embankment.  Good nest sites and good fishing sites are not always found in close proximity, so the pair may maintain two territories — one to feed, and one to raise the young.  I spotted a kingfisher nest at Isaac Lake a couple of years ago from the viewing platform, sitting just above the water along the banks of the pond.  Territorial as they are, any kingfisher spotted in the sanctuary at this time of year would have to be a permanent resident, so it’s entirely possible that the burrow belonged to this particular male and his mate.  I’ll have to keep a look out for this year’s nest site come June.