ABA Bird of the Year

Belted Kingfisher (Megaceryle alcyon)
female

I learned on Twitter that the American Birding Association designates a species of bird each year as the bird of the year. And that is why I enjoyed so many cuteness overloads of burrowing owl photographs—the 2022 Bird of the Year. (Off topic: burrowing owls were the main character in Hoot by Carl Hiaasen; not such a great book but a great movie to show in class and demonstrate in a derivative sort of way the power of kids working for right and not for wrong.)

The Bird of the Year for 2023 will be the Belted Kingfisher. This is very familiar to me. I live right on a state-mapped wetlands so I often watch them fishing and hear their calls. But photographs? Well, those are hard, even with my big camera and big lens. I did get a photo in the Victory Bog Wildlife Management Area in Vermont (the top photo). It was the same place and same hike that I captured the myrtle warbler posted yesterday.  

This bird demonstrates sexual dimorphism but in reverse. We usually think that the flashy colored birds are male. But not this time! I learned only today that the female kingfisher is more brightly colored than the male. The male has a white breast. 

There have not been as many kingfishers here the past couple of years. Why? Not enough water because not enough beaver. The circle always comes back to those beaver.

But I remember their aggressive behaviors, their calls that sounded like rattlesnakes to me (who has never heard a rattlesnake in person), and their poor etiquette: they catch fish and beat the fish's head on trees until it is dead! It's a horror show broadcast live in your window.

Kingfishers are all over North America, so we all can see them if we try. Just go to rivers and lakes that have fish. Don't forget your camera! The  map says they should be where I live year-round and are breeding here. For more information, see All About Birds at Cornell. 

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