Basic Information
Scientific classification
- Chinese name: Spotted jade
- Scientific name: Halcyon chelicuti, Striped kingfisher
- Classification: Climbing birds
- Family and Genus: Order Coraciiformes, Family Kingfisher, Genus Kingfisher
Vital signs data
- Body length: Approximately 17 centimeters
- Weight: 30-50g
- Lifespan: No verification data available.
Significant features
Distribution and Habitat
Spotted jade is found in south-central Africa.
The spotted kingfisher typically inhabits woodlands and shrublands, avoiding densely cultivated areas, and is not always dependent on aquatic environments. It has been found distributed from sea level to 2300 meters.
Appearance
The Spotted Kingfisher measures 17 cm in length; males weigh 30-41 g, and females 37-50 g. It has a brown barred forehead and nearly equal proportions of black and white feathers. The lores, eye stripe, and eye are black. The cheeks and neck are cream, white-grey, or pale yellow with fine, dark white streaks. The wattles and cape are dark brown, contrasting sharply with the sky-blue back and tail. The green tail is tinged with blue-grey, and the wing coverts are dark brown with a slight white tinge. The entire underparts (chin, throat, breast, undertail) are white. The belly is white, especially with pale yellow and black streaks along the edges. The lower tail is silver-grey. The upper jaw is brown or purple, red, and occasionally reddish-brown. The iris is dark brown, and the legs are dark red.
The beak is thick and long, resembling a chisel, with a relatively wide base, a straight beak peak, a rounded ridge, and no nasal grooves on either side; the wings are rounded, with the first primary flight feather being the same length as or slightly shorter than the seventh primary flight feather, and the second, third, and fourth primary flight feathers being nearly the same length; the base of the primary flight feathers has white spots; the tail is rounded.
Detailed introduction
The striped kingfisher, scientifically known as *Halcyon chelicuti*, has two subspecies: 1. *Halcyon chelicuti eremogiton*, distributed in the Sahel region of Mali and Nigeria and Sudan; 2. *Halcyon chelicuti chelicuti*, distributed in Mauritania, Somalia, Namibia, Botswana, and South Africa.
The spotted kingfisher typically hunts alone or in pairs. Like most forest kingfishers, it is entirely carnivorous, often searching for prey in leaves or soil. Its main diet consists of invertebrates such as crickets, spiders, scorpions, and snails. It also eats small vertebrates such as small fish, small snakes, and lizards.
The spotted kingfisher nests on earthen cliffs or river embankments, using its beak to dig tunnel-like burrows, 60 cm deep, 20 cm wide, and 10 cm high, oval in shape. These burrows are generally unlined. Eggs are laid directly on the ground inside the nest. Both kingfishers take turns incubating the eggs. Some also burrow into tree trunks to make nests. The eggs are nearly round and pure white.
Listed as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List.
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