Silvery Kingfisher of Bohol

[Ely Teehankee]

By the time I got to Bohol I was 2 weeks late to see the hatching of the Silvery Kingfisher (Alcedo argentite)
6 inches (15.2 cm.) but still had the opportunity to see them feeding on their own and being fed by the mother. It was delightful to take pictures of this endemic bird because this bird would give out a loud call when it makes a landing and when taking off.



Canon EOS 1D Mark IV, Canon EF 800mm f5.6L IS USM, Gitzo GT3530LS tripod, M-3.6 Mongoose Gimbal Action Head. Manual exposure in available light.



This poem was sent to me by Yvonne and it is such a wonderful experience for me to be taking pictures of these little birds.

Each little flower that opens,
Each little bird that sings,
God made their glowing colors,
He made their tiny wings.

Cecil Francis Alexander



This is the immature Silvery Kingfisher that hatch about two weeks earlier. You can see that the legs are light orange in color.
1/40 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600




Here the baby bird perches on a branch looking at the water and waiting to see if there is something to catch & eat.
1/50 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600




I saw the bird dive several times each time catching a small shrimp. The shrimp was so small that it was swallowed before I can even take a picture of it.
1/50 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600




Sitting in contentment after several dives and eating the small shrimps.
1/320 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600




From time to time she would be looking for her mother and would make her call to find her.
1/40 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600




She hears her mother and tries to locate the call.
1/40 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600




She turns around and prepares to take off.
1/200 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600




Here is the mother, notice the orange red feet is much darker than the immature bird. She also has a dragon fly that she is not eating because she will give it to her young fledgling. The birds were about 23.8 meters and I had to use a 1.4X TC to be able to take these pictures. Not only were they far but it was also dark under the canopy.
1/40 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600




The young one arrives and the mother gives the dragon fly to her. Notice that the legs of the mother is bright orange in color.
1/20 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600




The transfer of the dragon fly has to be made carefully lest it escapes.
1/20 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600




Perfect placement of the dragon fly into the bill of the young bird.
1/20 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600




Here you can see the dragon fly is about to be swallowed by the young bird.
1/40 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600




Transfer of dragon fly a success as the mother looks with satisfaction.
1/40 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600




Mother goes to a perch with a vantage point for dragon flies. The cycle will try to repeat itself. The love of a mother is tireless. She will sacrifice the food that she has so she can give it to her young offspring. Even birds can show how much love a mother has for her offspring very much like that of human beings. It is very sad when young boys or men would use a sling shot or gun to kill these birds.
1/30 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600

[des]

Great photos and documentation, Ely. The young bird has a noticeably shorter bill, with a whitish tip. It seems to have more pale blue on the head too.

[Ely Teehankee]

Jun 7, 2012 7:03:59 GMT des said:

Great photos and documentation, Ely. The young bird has a noticeably shorter bill, with a whitish tip. It seems to have more pale blue on the head too.

Your observation absolutely confirms that this bird is just about 3 weeks old since it was hatch. I have been following the progress as I wanted to take some pictures of it at the nest. But I was told that it would be very difficult as the nest is usually deep inside a hole along the river bank. I was able to take a closer picture of this immature bird and the bill tip is actually yellow. I believe that it will grow longer and the yellow will disappear as it matures. Thank you Des for your comments.

[Jeniel Buday]

The Great Story Teller "Sir Ely Teehankee"! plus a very delightful series of fantastic shots... Godbless Sir Ely.. Thank you for sharing!

[William Lim]

Must be a difficult shooting situation, Ely. Wonderful job.

[Ely Teehankee]

Jun 7, 2012 9:32:54 GMT Jeniel Buday said:

The Great Story Teller "Sir Ely Teehankee"! plus a very delightful series of fantastic shots... Godbless Sir Ely.. Thank you for sharing!

Thank you Borgz. I used to post pictures with just a brief description of how the picture was taken. Over a period of time, I get comments from friends that they wished that I would describe more about the habitat, how the picture was taken, what is happening, how big is the bird, etc. They say that since I was there, I knew what was happening. But they do not know much about the habit of birds and how the picture was taken. I began to heed to their wishes and now more people can understand what is going on and can appreciate how the pictures were taken. Now they can see what went on from the narration and added pictures. I think I have made a lot of people happy.

[Ely Teehankee]

Jun 7, 2012 11:30:31 GMT William Lim said:

Must be a difficult shooting situation, Ely. Wonderful job.

You are right William there are times when things get difficult. But still it is something to be thankful for rather than nothing going on. It becomes much better when the situation is not as difficult. I have learned to accept the situation as they come but always hoping that a better condition will be coming. This happens too from time to time. Thank you for your appreciation William.

[Godfrey "Godo" Jakosalem]

I've always amaze with your photo. Congrats!

[Lawrence Lo]

Lovely shots sir Ely and the story telling really put us on the scene. Love to see this bird someday. Congrats

[Ely Teehankee]

Jun 8, 2012 22:32:44 GMT Lawrence Lo said:

Lovely shots sir Ely and the story telling really put us on the scene. Love to see this bird someday. Congrats

Thank you Lawrence. The best place to go to for the Silvery Kingfisher is Bohol. It is almost a sure thing to see except for the distance that you will be from the subject. Now that it is raining it will also be a disadvantage for bird photographers. I suggest that you go there when the rainy season is over.

[Ely Teehankee]

Jun 8, 2012 15:58:31 GMT Godfrey "Godo" Jakosalem said:

I've always amaze with your photo. Congrats!

Thank you Godo for your appreciation and for posting your funny looking Frogmouth about two years ago. I tried to look at it again at this Forum but your picture of the Frogmouth has disappeared. I finally got to see the Frogmouth on this trip. Your picture of the Frogmouth is my favorite. If you still have it, please send me a copy to [e-mail]

[des]

'The best place to go to for the Silvery Kingfisher is Bohol.'
McGregor considered that there were 2 species: Silvery Kingfisher of Mindanao etc and Steere's River Kingfisher of Bohol etc. It has recently been suggested that that is the better arrangement. The names suggested are Northern Silvery and Southern Silvery. Northern has buff lores and chin and richer blue underparts; Southern adults have white lores and throat and steely blue underparts. If you check through the photos on the web you can see that the differences are noticeable. There used to be a cooperative Southern Silvery at the Eagle Centre in Davao I believe, and also one in PICOP.
But surely the best place to see any bird is in a new place Try Biliran for Northern and almost anywhere off-the-beaten track on Mindanao for Southern.

[Ely Teehankee]

Jun 9, 2012 8:56:59 GMT des said:

'The best place to go to for the Silvery Kingfisher is Bohol.'
McGregor considered that there were 2 species: Silvery Kingfisher of Mindanao etc and Steere's River Kingfisher of Bohol etc. It has recently been suggested that that is the better arrangement. The names suggested are Northern Silvery and Southern Silvery. Northern has buff lores and chin and richer blue underparts; Southern adults have white lores and throat and steely blue underparts. If you check through the photos on the web you can see that the differences are noticeable. There used to be a cooperative Southern Silvery at the Eagle Centre in Davao I believe, and also one in PICOP.


But surely the best place to see any bird is in a new place Try Biliran for Northern and almost anywhere off-the-beaten track on Mindanao for Southern.

Thank you Des for pointing the difference between the Northern and Southern. I remember taking pictures of the Silvery Kingfisher in Bislig and upon checking it, you are right the lores and chin are white.
The chest is bluer. Here is the thread taken at Bislig:
birdphotoph.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=photo&action=display&thread=6349
If you have not pointed it out I would forever think that they were the same. Thank you so much for your explanation. Will they change the name anytime soon?

[Ramon Quisumbing]

Excellent captures and documentation, Ely.

[Tateo Osawa]

Very nice a documentary shot of the Silvery Kingfisher, Ely. all ways I like your Silvery K. shots !!.

[Ely Teehankee]

Jun 10, 2012 22:10:52 GMT Ramon Quisumbing said:

Excellent captures and documentation, Ely.

Thank you Ramon. I am beginning to enjoy the stories that goes with the pictures. LOL.

[Ely Teehankee]

Jun 11, 2012 4:22:13 GMT Tateo Osawa said:

Very nice a documentary shot of the Silvery Kingfisher, Ely. all ways I like your Silvery K. shots !!.

Thank you Tateo. I was able to get close to the immature Silvery Kingfisher inside the forest. It was a little bit dark but less than 8 meters. I will process them next week.

[Mick Harris]

A great set of shots

[Ely Teehankee]

Jun 11, 2012 9:52:37 GMT Mick Harris said:

A great set of shots

Thank you Mick. This was my best trip to Bohol especially with the occasion of being able to see and photograph three frogmouths.

[tina mallari]

WOW, I can only hope to take silvery kingfisher shots like these one day :-)