Pied kingfisher
Ceryle rudis (Linnaeus, 1758)
The pied kingfisher (Ceryle rudis) is a bird in the family Alcedinidae, subfamily Cerylinae, within the order Coraciiformes. Adults weigh 84.37 g as a representative value, with reported values from 82.4 to 86.4 g.
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Quick facts about the pied kingfisher
Its eggs incubate for 15 days, a clutch holds 5 eggs, and the IUCN Red List assesses it globally as Least Concern, not a threatened category.
- Weight
- 82.4 g – 86.4 gsrc for Weight
- Length
- Not recorded
- Lifespan
- 4.45 yearssrc for Lifespan
- Diet
- Aquatic predatorsrc for Diet
- Longest recorded lifespan
- 5 years
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- wetlandsrc for Habitat
- Egg incubation
- 15 dayssrc for Egg incubation
- Young per litter or clutch
- 4.5 – 5src for Young per litter or clutch
- Age at maturity
- 11.9 monthssrc for Age at maturity
- Litters or clutches a year
- 1.5src for Litters or clutches a year
- Lifestyle
- Perchingsrc for Lifestyle
- Migration
- Sedentarysrc for Migration
- Conservation status
- Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- Not recorded
Photos of the pied kingfisher
Only freely licensed photos are shown. Each carries its creator and licence.
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_female.jpg){kind=link}
Where does the pied kingfisher live?
Not recorded
What is the pied kingfisher?
The pied kingfisher (Ceryle rudis) is a species of water kingfisher widely distributed across Africa and Asia. Originally described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758, it has five recognised subspecies, and is the only member of the genus Ceryle. Its black-and white-plumage and crest, as well as its habit of hovering over clear lakes and rivers before diving for fish, make it distinctive. Males have a double band across the breast, while females have a single broken breast band. They are usually found in pairs or small family groups. When perched, they often bob their heads and flick up their tails.
From the Wikipedia article “Pied kingfisher” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Pied_kingfisher&oldid=1370050629), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.
What does the pied kingfisher sound like?
Is the pied kingfisher endangered?
The pied kingfisher is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.
- LCLeast Concern
- NTNear Threatened
- VUVulnerable
- ENEndangered
- CRCritically Endangered
- EWExtinct in the Wild
- EXExtinct
Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species. What the categories mean.
How is the pied kingfisher classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- classAves
- orderCoraciiformes
- familyAlcedinidae
- genusCeryle
- SpeciesCeryle rudis (Linnaeus, 1758)
Synonyms Alcedo melaleuca
Other names and names in other languages (73)
- PIKIEnglish
- BontvisvangerAfrikaans
- خاطف ظلهArabic
- خطاف أبقعArabic
- صياد السمك أبقعArabic
- صياد السمك الأبقعArabic
- Малко пъстро рибарчеBulgarian
- ছিটরংগা মাছরাঙাBangla
- Diredig brizhBreton
- alció garserCatalan
- Alció pigallatCatalan
- Изи ала коллоэц кекMari
- rybařík jižníCzech
- pysgotwr brithWelsh
- GråfiskerDanish
- GraufischerGerman
- ΚήρυλοςGreek
- Blanknigra alcionoEsperanto
- nigrablanka alcionoEsperanto
- Martín pescador píoSpanish
- kirju-kuningkalurEstonian
- ماهی خورک ابلقPersian
- kirjokalastajaFinnish
- Alcyon pieFrench
- Martin-pêcheur pieFrench
- Cruidín alabhreacIrish
- Eeasteyr breckManx
- Mayen kifiHausa
- פרפור עקודHebrew
- pjegavi vodomarCroatian
- tarka halkapóHungarian
- SkjaldþyrillIcelandic
- Martin pescatore bianconeroItalian
- Martin pescatore bianco e neroItalian
- ヒメヤマセミJapanese
- ಕಪ್ಪುಬಿಳಿ ಮಿಂಚುಳ್ಳಿKannada
- 얼룩물총새Korean
- margasis tulžysLithuanian
- raibais dzenītisLatvian
- പുള്ളിമീൻകൊത്തിMalayalam
- बंड्याMarathi
- कवड्या धीवरMarathi
- ပိန်ညင်းကျားBurmese
- bonte ijsvogelDutch
- terneisfuglNorwegian
- ਕਿਲਕਿਲਾPunjabi
- rybaczek srokatyPolish
- zimorodek srokatyPolish
- Chochó-brancoPortuguese
- Guarda-rios-de-coletePortuguese
- guarda-rios-malhadoPortuguese
- pica-peixe-malhadoPortuguese
- Малый пегий зимородокRussian
- RánesfiskárNorthern Sami
- rybárec strakatýSlovak
- črnobeli pasatSlovenian
- Vodomar šaracSerbian
- gråfiskareSwedish
- கார்வெண் மீன்கொத்திTamil
- கருப்பு வெள்ளை மீன்கொத்திTamil
- นกกะเต็นปักหลักThai
- นกกระเต็นปักหลักThai
- alaca YalicapkiniTurkish
- alaca yalıçapkınıTurkish
- seInwediTswana
- Рибалочка строкатийUkrainian
- Bói cá nhỏVietnamese
- 斑翡翠Chinese
- 斑魚狗Chinese
- 斑鱼狗Chinese
- isiQubaZulu
- iHlabahlabaneZulu
- isiXulaZulu
Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistWikidataWoRMSIUCN Red List
Relatives of the pied kingfisher
Other species in the same family Alcedinidae.
Common kingfisher
Alcedo atthis
White-throated kingfisher
Halcyon smyrnensis
Laughing kookaburra
Dacelo novaeguineae
Belted kingfisher
Megaceryle alcyon
Collared kingfisher
Todiramphus chloris
Blue-eared kingfisher
Alcedo meninting
ComparePied kingfisher vs Common kingfisherPied kingfisher vs White-throated kingfisherPied kingfisher vs Laughing kookaburraPied kingfisher vs Belted kingfisher
Common questions
Each answer is written from the sourced facts on this page, and only where they hold the answer.
What kind of animal is the pied kingfisher?
The pied kingfisher is a bird in the family Alcedinidae and the order Coraciiformes. It belongs to the subfamily Cerylinae and the genus Ceryle.
How much does a pied kingfisher weigh?
An adult Pied kingfisher weighs 84.37 g as a representative value, with reported values from 82.4 to 86.4 g.
What does the pied kingfisher eat?
The pied kingfisher is an aquatic predator and a carnivore.
Is the pied kingfisher endangered?
No. The IUCN Red List assesses the pied kingfisher globally as Least Concern, which is not a threatened category.
How long does a pied kingfisher live?
The pied kingfisher has a lifespan of 4.45 years, with values up to 5 years reported.
How many eggs does a pied kingfisher lay?
A pied kingfisher clutch holds 5 eggs, and the eggs incubate for 15 days.
Who named the pied kingfisher?
The pied kingfisher, Ceryle rudis, carries the authority (Linnaeus, 1758).
Sources and how to cite this page
Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.
- An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles · CC0 1.0 · E096-269
Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1 - AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds · CC BY 4.0 · v7
Tobias, J.A. et al. (2022) AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds. Ecology Letters 25: 581–597. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.13898. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7 - Catalogue of Life eXtended Release · CC BY 4.0 · 2026-10-16 XR
Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf - Wikimedia Commons · per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed) · 2026-11-11
Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence). - Wikidata · CC0 1.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service). - Wikipedia (English) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).
Embed a card for this animal on your own site
Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.
CreatureData. (2026). Pied kingfisher (Ceryle rudis). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/pied-kingfisher
“Pied kingfisher (Ceryle rudis).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/pied-kingfisher.
@misc{pied_kingfisher_2026,
title = {Pied kingfisher (Ceryle rudis)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/pied-kingfisher},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}