UNLESS Contest
Our Website Has
Views
The Guam Kingfisher: Todiramphus cinnamominus
Background
There are no Kingfishers left in the wild. The accidental introduction of the brown tree snake in Guam resulted in the near extinction of the bird. Zoos and organizations are working to save this species through breeding programs, such as the one at the Philadelphia Zoo.
Habitat
The Guam Kingfisher is native to… You guessed it! Guam. They are ground birds, whose habitat is primarily various terrestrial and riparian forests, including mature limestone forests, mixed woodlands, and second growth forest stands; they occasionally were found in scrub forests and coconut palm plantations.
Information About The Guam Kingfisher
Diet
The Kingfisher’s diet consists primarily of small lizards and insects. Wild Kingfishers will catch a lizard and carry it to a tree limb where the bird will beat the lizard against the limb until the once lively lizard has met its end at the hand of the small bird. At the Philadelphia Zoo, the Kingfishers are offered a base diet of lizards, baby mice (pinkies) and supplements. The enrichment portion of the diet includes a variety of insects. Although the lizards offered at the Zoo are already dead, the birds will still carry them to a tree and beat them before eating such as they would normally do in a wild setting.
Nesting
The Guam Kingfisher's beak is used to bore holes into trees and rotting wood for nesting. Male and female birds work together to build the nest, which may help the pair form a stronger bond. They drill nesting cavities in various trees, usually in decaying standing wood, and generally in taller trees in areas with dense canopy cover. Guam Kingfishers initially excavate their nesting cavity by flying straight at a nesting substrate and repeatedly jabbing their beak at it while flapping vigorously, and when available they will nest in existing cavities. During the nesting season, January through July (outside the rainy season), normal clutch size reportedly was two eggs, with both sexes sharing the duties of incubation and caring for the young. Incubation and nestling periods for this species in the wild were never documented, but in captivity, chicks hatch in about 23 days and fledge 33 days later.
