Halcyon malimbica
Silhouette: Andy Wilson · PhyloPic
In 3 days <5% in a week ~10%
The blue-breasted kingfisher (Halcyon malimbica) is a tree kingfisher widely distributed across Equatorial Africa. This kingfisher is essentially resident, but retreats from drier savanna areas to wetter habitats in the dry season.
This is a large kingfisher, 25 cm in length. The adult has a bright blue head, back, wing panel and tail. Its underparts are white, but it has a blue breast band. The shoulders are black. The flight of the blue-breasted kingfisher is rapid and direct. The large bill has a red upper mandible and black lower mandible. The legs are bright red.
Sexes are similar, but juveniles are duller than adults. The call of this noisy kingfisher is a whistled pu-pu-pu-pu-ku-ku-ku-ku. The blue-breasted kingfisher is a species of a variety of well-wooded habitats. It perches quietly in deep shade whilst seeking food. It is territorial but wary. This species mainly hunts large insects, arthropods, fish and frogs, but will also eat the fruit of the Oil Palm.
It has a striking display in which the wings are spread to show the white linings. The nest is a hole in a tree termite nest. A single clutch of two round white eggs is typical. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Niokolo-Koba National Park | 🇸🇳 Senegal | |
| 2 | Semuliki National Park | 🇺🇬 Uganda | |
| 3 | Odzala-Kokoua National Park | 🇨🇬 Republic of the Congo | |
| 4 | Kibale National Park | 🇺🇬 Uganda | |
| 5 | Taï National Park | 🇨🇮 Ivory Coast | |
| 6 | Virunga National Park | 🇨🇩 Democratic Republic of the Congo | |
| 7 | Queen Elizabeth National Park | 🇺🇬 Uganda | |
| 8 | Murchison Falls National Park | 🇺🇬 Uganda | |
| 9 | Lake Mburo National Park | 🇺🇬 Uganda |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Serrekunda | 🇬🇲 Gambia | |
| 2 | Lagos | 🇳🇬 Nigeria | |
| 3 | Abuja | 🇳🇬 Nigeria | |
| 4 | Accra | 🇬🇭 Ghana | |
| 5 | Kampala | 🇺🇬 Uganda |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Denver Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Barcelona Zoo | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 3 | ZooTampa | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Philadelphia Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Bird Paradise | 🇸🇬 Singapore | |
| 6 | Aquarama Barcelona | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 7 | Rainforest Wild Asia | 🇸🇬 Singapore | |
| 8 | Valencia Bioparc | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 9 | Bird Kingdom | 🇨🇦 Canada |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Blue-breasted Kingfisher sighting in Lake Mburo National Park on a given day, based on 8 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 326th most-seen of the 362 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to under 5%, and over a week to about 10%, if each day is a fresh chance.
March
In that month about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Blue-breasted Kingfisher in Lake Mburo National Park on a given day, against under 5% in April to February, the lowest months.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Blue-breasted 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.
9th of 9
Of the 9 parks where we can rate Blue-breasted Kingfisher sightings, Lake Mburo National Park ranks 9th at under 5%. The best odds are in Niokolo-Koba National Park (Senegal, about 60%), Semuliki National Park (Uganda, about 40%) and Odzala-Kokoua National Park (Republic of the Congo, about 40%). All parks ranked.
Same genus: Halcyon
The closest relatives of the Blue-breasted Kingfisher that you can see in Lake Mburo National Park (genus Halcyon, Typical Woodland Kingfishers) are Woodland Kingfisher (about 60%), Striped Kingfisher (about 50%) and Gray-headed Kingfisher (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Blue-breasted Kingfisher is recorded against all the birds logged in Lake Mburo National Park (8 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.
