{"id":80303,"date":"2021-03-04T06:20:08","date_gmt":"2021-03-04T13:20:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=80303"},"modified":"2025-07-30T04:18:12","modified_gmt":"2025-07-30T09:18:12","slug":"female-belted-kingfisher-march-birds-i-look-for","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2021\/03\/04\/female-belted-kingfisher-march-birds-i-look-for\/","title":{"rendered":"Female Belted Kingfisher – March Birds I Look For"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"FemaleFemale Belted Kingfisher calling from a branch \u2013 Nikon D500, f7.1, 1\/1250, ISO 250, +0.7 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

I photographed this female Belted Kingfisher calling from a branch in March of 2017 close to the Jordan River not far from where I live. March is a month when I know I can consistently find male and female Belted Kingfishers in the area because they can fish in the open water of the river.<\/p>\n

The kingfishers are also starting to feel the urges to mate and nest during this time of the year and the riverbanks are an excellent nesting location.<\/p>\n

Because I live within a few blocks of the Jordan River that there are times that I can hear the Belted Kingfishers calling<\/span><\/a> as they fly by from my living room. If I could find the nest of the kingfishers I see close to home on the banks of the Jordan River this spring I would be one happy woman.<\/p>\n

Years ago I did find a kingfisher nesting burrow on the banks of the river but unfortunately for me that burrow was in a location where it was especially hard to photograph because the riverbank wasn’t stable. It was dangerous for me and my gear to stand at the edge of the riverbank.<\/p>\n

Last year I was able to photograph a Belted Kingfisher family<\/span><\/a> through the spring and summer high in the Wasatch Mountains and I had a blast doing that. Seeing, photographing, and observing the kingfisher family was both entertaining and educational.<\/p>\n

I learned a lot about this species by watching them interact with each other and as the young kingfishers learned to catch prey on their own.<\/p>\n

Belted Kingfishers are year round residents in northern Utah. During the most frigid months of the year they will seek out locations where the water is open and not iced over. The Jordan River usually has some open water where they can find food even during the coldest period of winter.<\/p>\n

Finding these striking blue-gray, crested birds usually isn’t hard since they can be extremely vocal. Photographing them is a different challenge altogether because they can be terribly skittish. Just ask anyone who has ever tried to photograph them!<\/p>\n

Life is<\/em> good.<\/p>\n

Mia<\/p>\n

Click here<\/span><\/a> to see more of my Belted Kingfisher photos plus facts and information about this species.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I photographed this female Belted Kingfisher calling from a branch in March of 2017 close to the Jordan River not far from where I live.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":151068,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[500,27,709,26],"tags":[4004,2432,4897,4935,4072,4070,4934,4933,3008,5786,4018,4427],"class_list":["post-80303","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-belted-kingfishers","category-avian","category-salt-lake-county-utah","category-utah","tag-adult","tag-belted-kingfisher","tag-branch","tag-call","tag-calling","tag-female","tag-kingfisher","tag-kingfishers","tag-megaceryle-alcyon","tag-rattling","tag-sky","tag-tree"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/belted-kingfisher-adult-female-calling-tree-mia-mcpherson-4365.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p11Mom-kTd","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":108672,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2022\/12\/11\/queenfisher-2023-aba-bird-of-the-year\/","url_meta":{"origin":80303,"position":0},"title":"Queenfisher – 2023 ABA Bird of the Year","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"December 11, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"The 2023 ABA Bird of the Year was revealed yesterday evening. The bird of the year is the Queenfisher, also known as the female Belted Kingfisher.","rel":"","context":"In "Belted Kingfishers"","block_context":{"text":"Belted Kingfishers","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/kingfishers\/belted-kingfishers\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Female Belted Kingfisher on her throne, Farmington Bay WMA, Davis County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/belted-kingfisher-female-farmington-bay-mia-mcpherson-9262.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/belted-kingfisher-female-farmington-bay-mia-mcpherson-9262.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/belted-kingfisher-female-farmington-bay-mia-mcpherson-9262.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/belted-kingfisher-female-farmington-bay-mia-mcpherson-9262.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":109609,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2023\/01\/14\/low-light-female-belted-kingfisher\/","url_meta":{"origin":80303,"position":1},"title":"Low Light Female Belted Kingfisher","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"January 14, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"I found a perched female Belted Kingfisher while I was at Farmington Bay WMA two days ago. This was after the clouds came back in creating low light conditions.","rel":"","context":"In "Belted Kingfishers"","block_context":{"text":"Belted Kingfishers","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/kingfishers\/belted-kingfishers\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Low light female Belted Kingfisher on a branch, Farmington Bay WMA, Davis County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/belted-kingfisher-female-cool-mia-mcpherson-8253.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/belted-kingfisher-female-cool-mia-mcpherson-8253.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/belted-kingfisher-female-cool-mia-mcpherson-8253.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, 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Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/belted-kingfisher-male-mia-mcpherson-5361.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/belted-kingfisher-male-mia-mcpherson-5361.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/belted-kingfisher-male-mia-mcpherson-5361.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/belted-kingfisher-male-mia-mcpherson-5361.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":36257,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2016\/02\/24\/a-female-belted-kingfisher-and-her-rattling-call\/","url_meta":{"origin":80303,"position":3},"title":"Female Belted Kingfisher and Her Rattling Call","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"February 24, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Yesterday I had my first opportunity to photograph a nearby female Belted Kingfisher in Salt Lake County, Utah and I had fun getting to know her.","rel":"","context":"In "Belted Kingfishers"","block_context":{"text":"Belted Kingfishers","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/kingfishers\/belted-kingfishers\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Perched female Belted Kingfisher in Salt Lake County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/belted-kingfisher-female-mia-mcpherson-3836.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/belted-kingfisher-female-mia-mcpherson-3836.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/belted-kingfisher-female-mia-mcpherson-3836.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, 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2022","format":false,"excerpt":"I took my first of year male Belted Kingfisher portrait photos three days ago high in the Wasatch Mountains when this bird flew in close to me.","rel":"","context":"In "Belted Kingfishers"","block_context":{"text":"Belted Kingfishers","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/kingfishers\/belted-kingfishers\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Spring male Belted Kingfisher portrait, Wasatch Mountains, Summit County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/belted-kingfisher-male-close-up-mia-mcpherson-8772.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/belted-kingfisher-male-close-up-mia-mcpherson-8772.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, 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