Belted Kingfisher vs Northern Gannet

Megaceryle alcyon مقارنةً بـ Morus bassanus

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Side-by-Side Comparison

السمة Belted Kingfisher Northern Gannet
الاسم العلمي Megaceryle alcyon Morus bassanus
الرتبة Coraciiformes Suliformes
الفصيلة Alcedinidae Sulidae
حالة الحفاظ Least Concern Least Concern
الطول 33,0 cm (13.0 in) 93,0 cm (36.6 in)
طول الجناح 53,0 cm (20.9 in) 180,0 cm (70.9 in)
الوزن 150,0 g (5.29 oz) 3000,0 g (105.82 oz)
النظام الغذائي Primarily small fish caught by plunge-diving from a perch or hover. Also takes crayfish, frogs, … Shoaling fish, especially mackerel, herring, and capelin. Plunge-dives from heights of 30 meters at speeds …
عدد البيض في الوضع 6-7 1
Population Trend
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Size Comparison

Body Length
Belted Kingfisher 33,0 cm
Northern Gannet 93,0 cm
طول الجناح
Belted Kingfisher 53,0 cm
Northern Gannet 180,0 cm
الوزن
Belted Kingfisher 150,0 g
Northern Gannet 3000,0 g
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Habitat Comparison

الموائل المشتركة

Belted Kingfisher only

Northern Gannet only

بلا

Belted Kingfisher

Rivers, streams, lakes, ponds, estuaries, and coastlines with clear water and suitable perches. Nests in burrows dug into earthen banks.

Northern Gannet

Open ocean and coastal waters. Breeds in dense colonies on steep rocky islands and sea stacks.

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Song & Call Comparison

Belted Kingfisher

الغناء

A loud, rattling 'klee-klee-klee-klee' — mechanical and penetrating. Given in flight along rivers. Also a harsh 'kekekek' near nest. Far louder than Common Kingfisher.

Northern Gannet

الغناء

Loud, harsh 'urrah-urrah' grunting and croaking at breeding colonies on sea stacks. Also gives a softer 'karrr' in flight. Large colonies are extremely noisy during the breeding season.

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Geographic Range & Migration

Belted Kingfisher

North America from Alaska and Canada to Central America and the Caribbean. Northern populations migrate south in winter.

Northern Gannet

North Atlantic, breeding from Newfoundland and Gulf of St. Lawrence to Norway, Iceland, and Britain. Winters at sea south to the tropics.

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حالة الحفاظ

Least Concern

Belted Kingfisher

Least Concern

Northern Gannet

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How to Tell Them Apart

Belted Kingfisher

الريش

Blue-grey upperparts with a shaggy crest and a white collar. Males have a single blue-grey breast band; females have an additional rufous belly band.

المنقار

Long, heavy, straight, dark dagger-like bill

Northern Gannet

الريش

Brilliant white body with black wingtips and a golden-yellow wash on the head and nape. Blue-grey bill with dark lines and pale blue eye-ring.

المنقار

Long, straight, pointed, pale blue-grey bill with serrated edges

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About These Birds

Belted Kingfisher

The belted kingfisher is unusual in that the female is more colorful than the male, sporting an additional rufous belly band. These noisy birds announce their territory with a distinctive rattling call. They excavate nesting burrows up to 2.4 meters deep into riverbanks using their heavy bills.

Northern Gannet

The northern gannet is a spectacular plunge-diver, folding its two-meter wingspan into an arrow shape to hit the water at up to 100 km/h. Air sacs under the skin and a reinforced skull protect it from the impact. Bass Rock in Scotland hosts over 150,000 gannets, the largest single colony of any seabird in the world.

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