King’s Gambit
The Kingfishers of Southern Africa
It was a quiet day at Otter bridge, the spring air heating up as the morning ages, when all of a sudden, flitting between the reeds, something bright catches my eye. A small bird grabbed onto some reeds, its eyes fixed on the water below. It dives headfirst, propelling its small body down towards the water’s surface. The next thing I see is the little bird sitting atop a branch, perched with a little fish in its bill. For the next half hour, I sat watching this bird until it finally decided to leave the water’s edge, where it was hunting from, and flew off into the reeds beyond my view. In all that time it was hunting, it had not missed once. Fish after fish it would catch with its sharp, bright orange bill. Efficient and ruthless, like shooting fish in a barrel.
Gambit (noun): A clever action in a game or other situation that is intended to achieve an advantage and usually involves taking a risk. https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/gambit
The King’s Gambit is a chess opening, but it is not just any random opening. As the King is the most important piece on the board, white is significantly exposing his most valuable piece while attempting to catch black off guard. It is an aggressive and calculated opening that advances the game quickly, with white opening up its attacking pieces for a swift attack that can leave black staring down the barrel if he or she isn’t careful. Russian Grandmaster and former world chess champion, Anatoly Karpov said it best when he stated; “It doesn’t require much for misfortune to strike in the King’s Gambit — one incautious move and Black can be on the edge of the abyss.” https://www.ichess.net/blog/kings-gambit/
Having played competitive chess, albeit not at such a level, I can still relate by saying that when one is under pressure and caught off guard, things can go downhill very quickly, or in other words, the toast can hit the floor, with the buttered side down of course. In the game of chess, it is always easier to attack than to defend. By being active and aggressive you force your opponent to become reactive, never advancing his or her cause, always on the back foot. But an aggressive approach can become a risk, especially if that strategy is not a calculated one. I believe the millennials describe this as YOLO. In nature, many animals employ a similar strategy. They call it high risk, high reward. I call it the clever calculations of a Kingfisher.
What is a Kingfisher?
A group of birds that can lay claim to the title of most efficient hunters in the world, Kingfishers are an evolutionary marvel. With their dagger-like bills and supernatural reactions, they are amongst the most well-adapted birds on the planet.
There are roughly 120 species worldwide divided into 3 families, Alcedinidae, Halcyonidae, and Cerylidae. They are mostly known for their striking coloration and the spectacle of their dives into water as they hunt for aquatic prey. But before this happens there is a process that must take place. Like chess grandmasters they often sit and wait, calculating and contemplating their next move. Aware of the risk, but eager for the reward, they strike when least expected, with lightning-fast precision.
Despite their name, not all Kingfishers eat fish. Some eat insects and small reptiles while some will even eat large crabs and smaller snakes. Many of them make their nests in mud banks alongside rivers, where they excavate a hole, often several meters into the bank to raise their young. These nests are often littered with the regurgitated remains of their prey and their own droppings making for a most unpleasant environment. Oddly enough this habit of having the most unhygienic nest of all birds serves to keep predators at bay, as very few creatures would dare investigate such a foul-smelling mess.
All Southern African Kingfishers are monogamous with some being cooperative breeders. This means that some of the offspring from the previous year or unrelated birds from the same species will assist in raising the new chicks or help with territorial defense. In South Africa, we are fortunate to have a total of 10 species frequenting our shores. Some of them are residents while others are intra-African Migrants, enjoying our wet, summer season. Of the 10, I have been fortunate enough to see 5 of them without even leaving my home province. I believe this speaks to the wonderful diversity of wildlife and specifically bird life in my country, South Africa. Below are the 5 that I have had the privilege to spot in the wild.
The Jewel of the River
The Colorful Malachite kingfisher is a joy on the eyes while simultaneously being a precise and efficient hunter. It is a small bird, only 14cm in size with a preference for slow-moving water, where it is often found on the edges of small streams or ponds where it dashes between the reeds. Despite its size, it is easy to spot. Its bright orange bill and metallic blue crown and back make it the most striking kingfisher in the region. Interestingly however is that all this color is simply an illusion. In a phenomenon referred to as Tyndall scattering, blue light is scattered and reflected through the feathers which themselves are naturally a dull brown color. The resulting light is thus a bright blue, and it is said to be this same Tyndall effect which makes the sky appear blue and also brings out the beautiful blue in your crushes’ eyes.
The Olympic Diver
The Pied Kingfisher is a phenomenal bird. At 25cm long, it holds the distinct honor of being the largest bird in the world, capable of sustained hovering with no headwind to support it. All other hovering hunters such as the Kestrels or Ospreys require a strong headwind to support their large bodies. The ability to hover allows the Pied Kingfisher to exploit water far from the bank to hunt, thus eliminating competition with other fish-eating predators. It has a strong neck for keeping its head still, and a wide, square tail for keeping the body stationary mid-air.
But the remarkable abilities of the Pied Kingfisher don’t stop here. It is believed that this kingfisher uses the sun as a tool for hunting. By flying up, with its back towards the sun, it positions itself perfectly in its rays, creating a shadow around its body. This is believed to have 2 functions. Firstly, it reduces the glare of the sun on the water allowing the Kingfisher to better spot its underwater target. Secondly, a bit more far-fetched, I will admit, is that by blocking out the sun, its prey (most likely a fish), is now unable to see the Kingfisher as it is engulfed by shadow, much akin to us viewing an eclipse. This idea, however romantic, appears unlikely as top-dwelling fish tend to have eyes more suited for looking down into the water as the majority of their threats would come from below.
The signature hunting strategy of the Pied Kingfisher is to hunt from a perch over still water such as dams and small ponds. It then proceeds to fly up as high as 10 meters above the water where it will hover, actually moving its wings in a figure of 8, at 8 beats per second (The only Kingfisher able to do this), before plunging headfirst, like a missile with wings folded against its body, impacting the water at an incredible velocity and catching its prey, often more than a full meter underwater. This entire process from the moment it dives, to the moment it surfaces happens in less than a second. Japanese engineers have for this reason modeled their high-speed bullet trains after the body structure and diving prowess of the Pied Kingfisher. This is a discipline referred to as bio-mimicry, where scientists use nature to find sustainable solutions to human problems.
Owls and eagles may have eyes that have evolved far beyond the capabilities of other birds, allowing them to spot prey as far as 6km away (The powerful Martial Eagle can do this), but the eyes of Kingfishers have their very own superpower. In another form of bio-mimicry, scientists are studying the eyes of Kingfishers, which are known to be able to see through the water’s surface despite glare and reflections. This is because their eyes contain a higher amount of specialized red oil droplets in the cone cells of their retinas. This is believed to give them this special ability which is closely studied by scientists in seeking ways to improve coastguard rescue operations. Special cameras are at the forefront of this research where attempts are made to mimic the eyes of kingfishers, allowing actual vision underwater even in stormy conditions, from a helicopter, increasing the odds of saving lives.
The King of the Kingfishers
The King of course, is Megaceryle maxima or more commonly known as the Giant Kingfisher. Its scientific name alone should tell you that this bird is the Burj Khalifa of Kingfishers. Standing a whopping 44 cm tall this is the largest Kingfisher in Africa and 2nd largest on the planet. It is only dwarfed by the impressively sized Laughing Kookaburra from Australia. Taking in a hunting position alongside fast-flowing rivers it watches the water intently as it prepares to dive for prey much larger than any of the other Kingfishers would dare tackle. Known for breaking the spines of fish larger than it could fit in its mouth, and for crushing gigantic crabs into small bite-sized balls (birds cannot bite or chew in a literal sense, they swallow their prey whole), this Kingfisher is a force to be reckoned with on the river. It does the above by repeatedly smashing its prey against a surface once securely captured in its bill, a practice appearing most brutal yet highly efficient as the prey is stunned almost immediately and can offer no counter.
It has a beautiful black plumage, speckled with white spots. The Male has a rufous breast and white underparts while the female has a mottled, black and white breast and rufous underparts. It forms part of a group known as the Cerylid Kingfishers, alongside the Pied Kingfisher. Cerylid Kingfishers are the largest Kingfishers in Southern Africa and the only local species to sport crests. They are also the only 2 species in the region not to sport blue somewhere on their bodies.
The Blues of the Bushveld
The Striped and Brown-hooded kingfishers are both ‘dryland’ kingfishers. They form part of the group called the Dacelonid Kingfishers and belong to the genus Halcyon. They are found in Savanna woodland where they feed on small vertebrates and invertebrates. Both species have striking blue rear underwings, however, they have enough distinguishing characteristics to make a positive id. Both look quite similar however the Striped Kingfisher has a black upper mandible and a red lower mandible. On the Brown-hooded Kingfisher, both mandibles are bright red. The Brown-hooded Kingfisher is also 23cm long while the Striped is a smaller bird at only 18cm long.
The striped is also named as such because of the dark stripe running from the lore, through its eye, and towards the back of its head. They are usually found still hunting from a perch from which they will dive down on insects. They are also adept at hawking insects mid-air. The only time these 2 species would be found around water is when they plunge bathe, or their quarry leads them there. I have been fortunate enough to spot these eye-catching birds whilst hiking and it was a most surprising find, much to the displeasure of my beautiful girlfriend, whom I left stranded, as I rushed off into the bush after another beauty. I can only thank The Creator for giving her understanding and a heart full of loving patience, as I was well on my way to hiking home that day too.
Fishers of hearts
As you can most likely tell, I have an incredible fondness and reverence for these birds, as all who look upon them and learn about them should. An example of evolution at its finest, few birds can live up to their moniker in the way these birds can. Skillful and marvelous, they will display downright spectacular behavior and achieve feats few think possible. Come across one of these acrobats and you may just pick your jaw up off the floor when all is said and done. From dams to rivers to woodland, these birds epitomize how all birds should be living. Unshackled, untamed. Dancers of the skies, kings of the water. Kingfishers, wild and free.
