Mountain kingfisher

Mountain kingfisher
Scientific classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Coraciiformes
Family: Alcedinidae
Subfamily: Halcyoninae
Genus: Syma
Species:
S. megarhyncha
Binomial name
Syma megarhyncha
Salvadori, 1896
Subspecies
  • S. m. sellamontis - Reichenow, 1919
  • S. m. megarhyncha - Salvadori, 1896
Synonyms
  • Halcyon megarhyncha

The mountain kingfisher (Syma megarhyncha) is a species of bird in the subfamily Halcyoninae in the family Alcedinidae. Adult males are 21–24 cm (8.3–9.4 in) long, and have a rufous head and underparts, greenish-blue upperparts, a dark blue tail, and black flight feathers. They also have dark neck patches and loral patches. Females have dark crowns and the neck patches join at the nape. It is similar to the yellow-billed kingfisher, but can be distinguished by its larger size and a proportionally larger bill, along with a dark ridge along its culmen.

It is endemic to New Guinea, where it is found through most of the New Guinea Highlands, except for the Bird's Head Peninsula. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest and subtropical or tropical moist montane forest. It is found at elevations between 1,200–2,400 m (3,900–7,900 ft), although it has also been reported as low as 700 m (2,300 ft).

It feeds on small lizards, larvae, and insects. It lays eggs in December, and eggs are laid in clutches of two. The IUCN classifies it as a least-concern species.