African dwarf kingfisher

African dwarf kingfisher
Ispidina lecontei (African dwarf kingfisher) by John Gerrard Keulemans
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Coraciiformes
Family: Alcedinidae
Subfamily: Alcedininae
Genus: Ispidina
Species: I. lecontei
Binomial name
Ispidina lecontei
Cassin, 1856
Resident range
Synonyms
  • Ceyx lecontei[2]

The African dwarf kingfisher (Ispidina lecontei) is a species of kingfisher in the Alcedininae subfamily. It inhabits African rainforests and is found in Angola, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, South Sudan, and Uganda.

The first formal description of the African dwarf kingfisher was by the American ornithologist John Cassin in 1856. He introduced the current binomial name Ispidina lecontei. The specific epithet was chosen in honour of the entomologist John Lawrence LeConte.[3] This is the world's smallest kingfisher with a length of 10 centimetres (3.9 in) and a weight of 9–12 grams (0.32–0.42 oz).[4]

There are two subspecies:[5]

  • I. l. ruficeps Hartlaub, 1857 – Sierra Leone to Ghana, west of the Dahomey gap in the rainforest[6]
  • I. l. lecontei Cassin, 1856 – south Nigeria to west South Sudan, Uganda and central Democratic Republic of the Congo; central Angola

References

  1. ↑
  2. ↑
  3. ↑ Cassin, John (1856). "Descriptions of new species of African birds, in the Museum of Academy of Natural Sciences, of Philadelphia, collected by Mr. P.B. Du Chaillu, in Equatorial Africa". Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia. 8: 156–159 [158].
  4. ↑ Fry, C. Hilary; Fry, Kathie; Harris, Alan (1992). Kingfishers, Bee-eaters, and Rollers. London: Christopher Helm. pp. 195–196. ISBN 978-0-7136-8028-7.
  5. ↑ Gill, Frank; Donsker, David, eds. (2017). "Rollers, ground rollers & kingfishers". World Bird List Version 7.2. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 17 May 2017.
  6. ↑ Dickerman, R.W. (1993). "On the validity of Ceyx (Myioceyx) lecontei ruficeps". Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club. 113 (4): 255–257.


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