White-throated Kingfisher -Hacyon smyrnensis, Honiton Place, Avissawella, Sri Lanka.

White-throated Kingfisher - Halcyon smyrnensis, home garden, Avissawella, Sri Lanka.

White-throated Kingfisher - Halcyon smyrnensis, home garden, Avissawella, Sri Lanka.

After laying its eggs in a hole in the wall of an embankment, the parents would be constantly on the watch for predators. I have seen them pecking at the head of a much larger ''Monitor Lizard' when the latter went close to the eggs. The parents feed the young ones till they are fit to fly. After about a week of flying they part ways. Even though it is called  a King-fisher this type exists by eating moths, dragonflies, grasshoppers etc.

White-throated Kingfisher - Halcyon smyrnensis, Avissawella, Sri Lanka.

I saw this bird guarding it's nest built into a cavity in a stone wall. It would chase away any predators with its loud cry. I have seen the parents darting and pecking a large iguanascreaming all the while. The iguana which had a taste for birds eggs beat a hasty retreat in the face of the attack.