Banded Kingfisher

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The Banded Kingfisher (Lacedo pulchella) is a medium-sized kingfisher with back and tail banded in black, hence giving it its name. The male as pictured here with crown and back metallic blue, forehead and mask rufous or black and pale buff below, and one of few kingfishers with pale, yellow-brown iris.

This striking and incredibly beautiful kingfisher was photographed about a month or so ago near a small town called Ayer Keroh in Melaka, Peninsular Malaysia, in a mosquito-infested swampland. Unfortunately, the local authorities have decided to start clearing the land to make way for urban developments, and by the time you read this, this beautiful bird has lost its home forever.

Kingfisher info courtesy of Answers.com