Habitat of the Kingfisher Bird

Setting

• Belted kingfisher birds live in areas with bodies of water such as lakes, ponds and wetlands, according to Wild-bird-watching.com. They are commonly seen throughout North America, according to Allaboutbirds.org. During the winter they are more commonly found along the coast, and by streams and lakes, according to Allaboutbirds.org.

Food

• Kingfisher birds feed off of the food they find in and around their natural habitats, which is mostly small fish. They commonly eat tadpoles, frogs and insects, according to Wild-bird-watching.com.

Fishing

• They fish by perching above the water and then plunging head-first into the water to capture food, according to Allaboutbirds.org. Adult birds teach their young how to hunt food for themselves by dropping dead food into waters so that their offspring can catch them, according to Allaboutbirds.org.

Migration

• Most kingfisher birds migrate south for the winter, but some males stay behind, according to the University of Massachusetts. Those that stay behind face the problem of finding water that hasn't frozen over in order to find food.

Breeding

• When kingfisher birds are in breeding season they defend their territory against other birds in couples, according to Allaboutbirds.org. The areas where kingfisher birds can breed have expanded by human activity such as building gravel pits, which helps by creating nesting sites, according to Allaboutbirds.org.

Nests

• Both the male and female kingfisher birds help to construct the nests, according to Wild-bird-watching.com. The male sticks with the female throughout the construction of the nest, the incubation of the eggs and the raising of their offspring, according to Wild-bird-watching.com. The nests are built by the birds digging a tunnel close by where they fish. The tunnel allows the eggs to be in total darkness. Nests are usually built in eroding banks.