Corythornis vintsioides
Silhouette: Steven Traver · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%
The Malagasy kingfisher or Madagascar kingfisher (Corythornis vintsioides) is a species of bird in the family Alcedinidae that is found in Madagascar, Mayotte and the Comoros. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical mangrove forests.
The Malagasy kingfisher was formally described by the French naturalists Joseph Eydoux and Paul Gervais in 1836 and given the binomial name Alcedo vintsioides. It is closely related to the malachite kingfisher (Corythornis cristatus) which is widely distributed in mainland Africa. It is one of only two kingfishers that occur in Madagascar. The other is the Madagascar pygmy kingfisher (Corythornis madagascariensis).
There are two subspecies: The Malagasy kingfisher is 13 cm (5.1 in) in length with a weight of 16.5 to 22 g (0.58 to 0.78 oz). It has dark blue upperparts, rufous underparts and a crested blue-and-green-barred crown. The bill is black. The sexes are alike. The blue plumage of the race C. v. johannae is paler and greener than that of the nominate.
Madagascar pygmy kingfisher List of birds of Madagascar... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ankarafantsika National Park | 🇲🇬 Madagascar | |
| 2 | Mantadia National Park | 🇲🇬 Madagascar | |
| 3 | Berenty Reserve | 🇲🇬 Madagascar | |
| 4 | Ranomafana National Park | 🇲🇬 Madagascar |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Antananarivo | 🇲🇬 Madagascar |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Malagasy Kingfisher sighting in Berenty Reserve on a given day, based on 12 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 48th most-seen of the 63 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 40%, if each day is a fresh chance.
Between 6 and 9 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Malagasy Kingfisher sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
3rd of 4
Of the 4 parks where we can rate Malagasy Kingfisher sightings, Berenty Reserve ranks 3rd at about 10%. The best odds are in Ankarafantsika National Park (Madagascar, about 50%) and Mantadia National Park (Madagascar, about 30%).
Same order: Coraciiformes
The closest relatives of the Malagasy Kingfisher that you can see in Berenty Reserve (order Coraciiformes, Rollers, Kingfishers, and Allies) are Broad-billed Roller (about 40%) and Madagascar Bee-eater (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Malagasy Kingfisher is recorded against all the birds logged in Berenty Reserve (12 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
