About Corythornis vintsioides (Eydoux & Gervais, 1836)
The Malagasy kingfisher, also called the Madagascar kingfisher (scientific name Corythornis vintsioides), is a species of bird in the kingfisher family Alcedinidae. It is found in Madagascar, Mayotte, and the Comoros, and its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical mangrove forests. This species was formally described in 1836 by French naturalists Joseph Eydoux and Paul Gervais, who originally gave it the binomial name Alcedo vintsioides. It is closely related to the malachite kingfisher (Corythornis cristatus), a species widely distributed across mainland Africa. Only two kingfisher species occur in Madagascar; the Malagasy kingfisher is one, and the other is the Madagascar pygmy kingfisher (Corythornis madagascariensis). There are two recognized subspecies: C. v. johannae, described by R. Meinertzhagen in 1924, which is native to the Comoro Islands, and the nominate subspecies C. v. vintsioides, originally described by Eydoux and Gervais in 1836, which is native to Madagascar. The Malagasy kingfisher measures 13 cm (5.1 in) in length and weighs between 16.5 and 22 g (0.58 to 0.78 oz). It has dark blue upperparts, rufous underparts, a crested crown with blue and green barring, and a black bill. The sexes have identical plumage and appearance. The blue plumage of the subspecies C. v. johannae is paler and greener than the blue plumage of the nominate subspecies.
