| Giant Kingfisher | |
|---|---|
 Male | |
| Information | |
| Range | Africa. |
| Scientific Classification | |
| Kingdom | Animalia |
| Phylum | Chordata |
| Class | Aves |
| Order | Coraciiformes |
| Family | Alcedinidae Cerylinae |
| Genus | Megaceryle |
| Species | Megaceryle maxima |
| Conservation Status | |
 Least Concern | |
The Giant kingfisher (Megaceryle maxima), is the largest species of water kingfisher in Africa, where it is a resident breeding bird over most of the continent south of the Sahara Desert other than the arid southwest.
Description[]
Female
The giant kingfisher is 42–48 cm (16½-18⅞ inches) long, with a large crest and finely spotted white on black upperparts. The male has a chestnut breast band and otherwise white underparts with dark flank barring, and the female has a white-spotted black breast band and chestnut belly.
Subspecies[]
There are two subspecies, Megaceryle maxima maxima, found in open country, and Megaceryle maxima gigantea in the rainforest. The forest race is darker, less spotted above, and more barred below than maxima, but the two forms intergrade along the forest edge zone.
Diet[]
This large species feeds on crabs, fish, and frogs, caught in the typical kingfisher way by a dive from a perch.
Reproduction[]
Breeding is from August to January, 3–5 eggs being laid in a riverbank tunnel.
Call[]
This large species feeds on crabs, fish, and frogs, caught in the typical kingfisher way by a dive from a perch.