Alcedo coerulescens
Silhouette: Steven Traver · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~50% in a week ~80%
The cerulean kingfisher (Alcedo coerulescens) is a kingfisher in the subfamily Alcedininae which is native to parts of Indonesia. With an overall metallic blue impression, it is very similar to the common kingfisher, but it is white underneath instead of orange. Males average bluer than females, which have a greenish cast.
It is sometimes called the small blue kingfisher but in Indonesia and parts of Asia that name refers to Alcedo atthis (common kingfisher). The first formal description of the cerulean kingfisher was by the French ornithologist Louis Pierre Vieillot in 1818. He coined the binomial name Alcedo coerulescens. The specific epithet coerulescens is from the Latin caerulescens meaning "bluish". The species is monotypic.
The cerulean kingfisher is a small kingfisher with a length of 13 cm (5.1 in). The upperparts are a range of shades of blue with white lores and a prominent white patch on each side of the neck. The underparts are white with an azure-blue breast-band. The bill is blackish and the legs are dark brown. The female has duller and slightly greenish plumage and a narrower breast band.
The cerulean kingfisher... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bali Barat National Park | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | |
| 2 | Way Kambas National Park | 🇮🇩 Indonesia |
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Small Blue Kingfisher sighting in Way Kambas National Park on a given day, based on 65 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 77th most-seen of the 205 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 50%, and over a week to about 80%, if each day is a fresh chance.
March, May and July–August
In those months about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Small Blue Kingfisher in Way Kambas National Park on a given day, against about 10% in June and September, the lowest months. November to February have too few records to rate.
Between 2 and 5 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Small Blue Kingfisher sightings with a recorded time, and about half of them come between 6 pm and 6 am: it is most active around dawn and dusk.
2nd of 2
Of the 2 parks where we can rate Small Blue Kingfisher sightings, Way Kambas National Park ranks 2nd at about 20%. The best odds are in Bali Barat National Park (Indonesia, about 40%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Small Blue Kingfisher is recorded against all the birds logged in Way Kambas National Park (65 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.
