Bird guideYellow-billed Kingfisher

Small green kingfisher with orange head and bright yellow bill, found in wet rainforest on Cape York Peninsula and in New Guinea.

⚠️Not listed

At a glance

FamilyKingfishers
SizeSmall
RarityUncommon
HabitatSmall green kingfisher with orange head and bright yellow bill, found in wet rainforest on Cape York Peninsula and in New Guinea.
Best timeMost reliable in Queensland from January.

Sounds

Sound sample
0:000:00
Recorded by Kelle Moreau

Range map

Range map

80visible hotspots
3213visible records
1states
Low confidenceMediumHigh confidence

Aggregated occurance data is sourced from 14 different actively-updating datasets including eBird Australia, iNaturalist Australia, BirdLife Australia, and multiple state-based bird surveys through Atlas of Living Australia.

Species notes

Overview

In flight, note uniformly colored wings (no wing spots). Adult female has small black cap. Juvenile similar to adult but with black bill.

Behavior

It perches in the low canopy, swaying from side to side, before swooping down to the ground to take its prey. The nest of the yellow-billed kingfisher is usually an excavated chamber in an arboreal termite nest. Calls include loud, repeated whistling trills like a postman's whistle, mainly during the breeding season.

Regional timing

Queensland
Peak: January3,210 records
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