Kingfisher in length and between in weight. The largest kingfisher in Africa is the giant kingfisher ("Megaceryle maxima"), which is in length and in weight. The familiar Australian kingfisher known as the laughing kookaburra ("Dacelo novaeguineae") is the heaviest species with females reaching nearly in weight. The plumage of most kingfishers is bright, with green and blue being the most common colours. The brightness of the colours is neither the product of iridescence (except in the American kingfishers) or pigments, but is instead caused by the structure of the feathers, which causes scattering of blue light (the Tyndall effect). In most
Forest kingfisher Forest kingfisher The forest kingfisher ("Todiramphus macleayii"), also known as the Macleay's or blue kingfisher, is a species of kingfisher in the subfamily Halcyoninae, also known as tree kingfishers. It is a predominantly blue and white bird. It is found in Indonesia, New Guinea and coastal eastern and Northern Australia and Singapore. Like many other kingfishers, it hunts invertebrates and small frogs and lizards. The forest kingfisher was first described by the naturalists Sir William Jardine and Prideaux John Selby in 1830. It was known for many years by its old scientific name of "Halcyon macleayi" before being transferred to