Halcyon smyrnensis
Silhouette: Andy Wilson · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~40% in a week ~70%
The white-throated kingfisher (Halcyon smyrnensis) also known as the white-breasted kingfisher is a tree kingfisher, widely distributed in Asia from the Sinai east through the Indian subcontinent to China and Indonesia. This kingfisher is a resident over much of its range, although some populations may make short distance movements. It can often be found well away from water where it feeds on a wide range of prey that includes small reptiles, amphibians, crabs, small rodents and even birds. During the breeding season they call loudly in the mornings from prominent perches including the tops of buildings in urban areas or on wires.
The white-throated kingfisher is one of the many birds that were first formally described by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1758 in the tenth edition of his Systema Naturae. He coined the binomial name Alcedo smyrnensis. Linnaeus cited Eleazar Albin's Natural History of Birds published in 1738 that included a description and a plate of the "Smirna Kingfisher". Albin's specimen was preserved in alcohol and had been collected by the botanist William Sherard who served as the British Consul at Smyrna between 1703 and 1716. The present... Wikipedia →
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yangon | 🇲🇲 Myanmar | |
| 2 | Thiruvananthapuram | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 3 | Tamluk | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 4 | Savar | 🇧🇩 Bangladesh | |
| 5 | Ponnani | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 6 | Tiruchirappalli | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 7 | Thrissur | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 8 | Visakhapatnam | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 9 | Madurai | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 10 | Jabalpur | 🇮🇳 India |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Walsrode World Bird Park | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 2 | El Paso Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Hong Kong Zoological and Botanical Gardens | 🇨🇳 China | |
| 4 | Edward Youde Aviary | 🇭🇰 Hong Kong SAR China | |
| 5 | Ocean Park Hong Kong | 🇨🇳 China |
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a White-throated Kingfisher sighting in Karachi on a given day, based on 19 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 44th most-seen of the 97 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 40%, and over a week to about 70%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February and October
In those months about 30% of wildlife watchers report a White-throated Kingfisher in Karachi on a given day, against about 10% in March–August and November–January, the lowest months. Those are among Karachi's driest months, with about 5 mm of rain a month against 75 mm in August.
Between 7 and 10 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most White-throated Kingfisher sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
87th of 103
Of the 103 cities where we can rate White-throated Kingfisher sightings, Karachi ranks 87th at about 20%. The best odds are in Yangon (Myanmar, about 80%), Thiruvananthapuram (India, about 80%) and Tamluk (India, about 80%).
Same order: Coraciiformes
The closest relatives of the White-throated Kingfisher that you can see in Karachi (order Coraciiformes, Rollers, Kingfishers, and Allies) are Asian Green Bee-eater (about 50%) and Indian Roller (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the White-throated Kingfisher is recorded against all the birds logged in Karachi (19 verified sightings), 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.
