Kingfisher
 
Kingfisher, common name for any member of a family of birds having large heads, often crested. Their bodies are short and plump, and their legs and feet are small. Most have short tails, except for the beautiful paradise kingfishers of Australia and New Guinea. The bills of kingfishers are variable, depending on their food. Not all kingfishers feed on fish; a large number of forest-inhabiting species eat nonaquatic invertebrates and small vertebrates. Kingfishers are found in temperate and tropical areas throughout the world, and are especially abundant in the islands of the Pacific Ocean. They nest in tunnels in earth banks and lay pure white eggs.Kingfishers range in size from the tiny African dwarf kingfisher, 10 cm (4 in) long, to the laughing kookaburra of Australia, 46 cm (18 in) long. Only six species inhabit the Americas. The best known is the belted kingfisher, which breeds from Alaska to Florida, with someindividuals moving south for the winter as far as northern South America. It is blue-gray above and white below, with a shaggy crest. Males have a blue-gray “belt” across the breast; females have a rusty band below the blue-gray one. The length of the belted kingfisher is 33 cm (13 in). A similar but larger species, the ringed kingfisher, is 41 cm (16 in). It is tropical, occurring as far north as south Texas. The other four species that inhabit the Americas, in graduated sizesfrom 13 to 27 cm (5 to 11.5 in), are all tropical and have dark green backs.Scientific classification: Kingfishers make up the family Alcedinidae in the order Coraciiformes. The African dwarf kingfisher is classified as Corythornus lecontei (several other genera have been applied to this species), the laughing kookaburra as Dacelo novaeguineae,the belted kingfisher as Ceryle alcyon, and the ringed kingfisher as Ceryle torquata. The other four species inhabiting the Americas are classified in the genus Chloroceryle.Belted KingfisherMost kingfishers live near bodies of water, from which they catch their prey. The belted kingfisher, a short, plump bird of the family Alcedinidae, usually sits on a perch overhanging water or hovers above water until it spots a fish below. The kingfisher then aims and divesinto the water where it grasps the fish within its beak.
 
Peacock
Peacock or Peafowl, common name for three members of the pheasant family. Although these birds are more commonly called peacocks, that name is properly applied only to males; females are called peahens. Two species are Asian: the common or Indian peafowl, and the green peafowl. The third species, the Congo peafowl, is known only from the forests of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC, formerly Zaire). The Asian peacocks are noted for their resplendent trains of long upper tail coverts, which conceal their relatively short tails, andare raised and spread in strutting displays. The feathers are generally iridescent green and gold and are ornamented with eyelike markings of a rich color, known as peacock blue. The same blue also appears on the head, neck, breast, and crest of the common peacock; in the green peacock the head, neck, and underparts are green. The peahens have no trains and are less colorful than the males. Peafowl build their nests on the ground or in the low branches of trees.The birds subsist on an omnivorous diet of worms, insects, small snakes, and seeds.The common peafowl has been domesticated in many parts of the world, and there are feral populations in the Hawaiian Islands. A white variety has been produced by selective breeding. The Congo peafowl is the only true pheasant found in Africa. It was first discovered as a feather in the hat of a local African in 1913, but the first whole birds, two old taxidermic mounts that had been misidentified as immature common peafowl, were found in 1936 in Belgium. It is known only from parts of central and eastern DRC, where it is protected by law. It is smaller and less ornate than the Asian species. Scientific classification: Peacocks belong to the family Phasianidae of the order Galliformes. The common, or Indian, peafowl is classified as Pavo cristatus; the green peafowl as Pavo muticus; and the Congo peafowl as Afropavo congensis.PeacockThe male peacock’s elongated upper tail feathers and brilliant colors are used to attractfemales during courtship. The peacock’s diet includes insects, invertebrates, worms, and even snakes.
 
Cock-of-the-rock
Cock-of-the-Rock, common name for two tropical South American birds. Males of both species are about 26 cm (about 10.25 in) long and have distinctive disklike crests. Females are smaller, with rudimentary crests. The male Guianan cock-of-the-rock is mostly bright orange,the female dark brown. Subspecies of the Andean cock-of-the-rock vary in color from orange to blood-red in males; females are shades of reddish-brown. The cock-of-the-rock, like many other cotingas, starts its mating season with an elaborate group dance. The display takes place in a cleared space on the forest floor and is observed by females from the branches above. Each male performs a multiphase dance that shows off his colorful plumage and crest. Nests are of mud and plant material attached to vertical rock faces.Scientific classification: Cock-of-the-rocks make up the genus Rupicola of the family Cotingidae, order Passeriformes. The Guianan cock-of-the-rock is classified as Rupicola rupicola and the Andean cock-of-the-rock as Rupicola peruviana.Cock-of-the-RockThe male cock-of-the-rock, a tropical bird of South America, performs an elaborate courting dance that shows off his colorful plumage and crest. Pictured here is a male Andean cock-of-the-rock, Rupicola peruviana.
 
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