sacred kingfishers nests

[David Rees <>]

Philip

In NZ where the Sacred Kingfisher occur widely and are esp. common in the north of the country and from experience a common sight in suburban Auckland they are known to nest in clay banks and also in tree hollows (there are less natural tree hollow there I think as termite activity is much lower than here).

David

On Tue, Jan 2, 2018 at 5:07 PM, Philip Veerman <> wrote:

Yes me too. Over the years I think I have seen more Sacred Kingfishers nests in tree hollows than in sand banks but that is just an impression I have no counts of it, I have never been to “the west”. Often the tree hollows they use are quite dirty, maybe from the tree having been used by termites for a long time or being in the old floodway of a river now exposed but they certainly are tree hollows. So I am a little surprised at that information but yes it is in that book

 

Philip

 

From: sandra henderson [
Sent: Tuesday, 2 January, 2018 4:54 PM
To: Suzanne EDGAR
Cc: David Cook; COG
Subject: Re: [canberrabirds] Eastern Yellow Robin, Wamboin

 

Sue, I can recall seeing sacred kingfishers carrying food into a tree hollow next to the Molonglo River some years ago, at that spot where the feral geese hang out across from the Jerra Wetland paddocks

 

sandra H

 

On 2 January 2018 at 16:42, Suzanne EDGAR <> wrote:

Beautiful pic!!

We spent a v nice birdy Xm week on a property/accom. , ‘Ecocrackenback’ (look it up online; highly recommended to birdos & nature lovers: all the breeding is still going on up there) , up Wolondilly Rd c. 10 mins up the Alpine Way fr Jindabyne. The chalet we had, provided constant amusement fr the front terrace: to the left were 2 w wagtails doing the job-swapping on a nest; to the right were 2 sacred  kingfishers doing the job-swapping of feeding dependent young in a burrow in a tree trunk [i.e. not the usual clay bank or termite mound ; I’d never known of such a burrow for this bird & on consulting Slater f guide read that only birds in the west make & use such burrows; however there they were.]

The wagtails, espec., in the eve, did a lot of malignant dive-bombing, circling, swooping & attempted pecking of each kingfisher who would sit quite still & maintain a stern & stolid composure @ all such times.

Sz