Black-capped Kingfisher

Black-capped Kingfisher (Halcyon pileata) is a fairly large (30 cm), mainly coastal black-purplish kingfisher with a bright coral red bill. It has a black crown, broad white collar and pale rufous underparts. It is purplish-black above with bluer rump and has blackish wing shoulders.

Black-capped Kingfisher is usually seen alone near the seacoast, well-wooded estuaries and mangroves along the Indian coast. It is largely dependant on the presence of water, chiefly salt or brackish for food. Diet mainly consists of fish and crab. Nesting season is from May to July. The bird normally nests in a tunnel dug in the earth-bank of a river or creek ending in a widened egg chamber.