Drawa kingfisher set off to conquer Scandinavia

"This bird was ringed as a chick on the Drava, near Drawno (West Pomerania). After more than two months it reached Sweden. In this case, the surprise is not the record flight distance (320 km), but mainly the direction of travel - completely contrary to previous kingfisher behavious during cold weather" - said Roman Kucharski, ornithologist working with the Drawa National Park.

A similar case was reported in 1992, but then the kingfisher present in Sweden originated from the area of Elblag. Kingfisher is a very rare species in Sweden. The country\'s population is estimated at approx. 200 pairs.

"When it comes to the birds ringed in the Drawa National Park, until now we have not had information about observations of our kingfishers in this Scandinavian country. It should be noted that Sweden is a very unusual direction of travel for kingfishers looking for more favourable living conditions in winter" - said Kucharski.

According to the ornithologist, recording the presence of Polish kingfisher in Sweden is another very valuable information, which greatly expands the knowledge about the migration behaviour of this species.

Kingfisher breeding population clusters on the Drawa are among the largest in Poland. Every year, naturalists ring approx. 100-150 birds in the area. Observations conducted in the Drawa National Park indicate that kingfishers are unrelenting travellers. The record holder is the bird that in 2014 flew to the Drawa River from the south of Spain, travelling the distance of 2 152 km.

Drawa\'s native record holder is the kingfisher that flew from the area of Bogdanka (camping spot for tourists in the Drawa National Park) to the British Isles. It flew 971 km.

Kingfishers live near clean water abounding in small fish and forested, steep, sandy slopes. They can find all this in the Drawa National Park, on the rivers Drawa, Płociczna and Cieszynka.

Kingfisher (Alcedo atthis) is similar to the starling in size. It is one of the most beautiful birds found in Poland. Vivid colours of its feathers make it stand out against other winged species and resemble birds of paradise rather than those usually occurring in our climate zone.

Although kingfishers are small, very fast and agile creatures, with the blue - orange coloration they are easy to spot when they are flying over the surface of the water or along the bank of the river. Their hunting method is equally impressive. Kingfisher usually sits on a branch and watches small fish. At a convenient moment attacks nosediving right on the victim, grabs it with its beak and kills by hitting it against the branch, and then swallowed whole.

Drava in the Drawa National Park is one of the rivers in the country with the highest population densities of breeding kingfishers. The studies of these birds are conducted there since 2011 and included in the scope of monitoring of the kingfisher population in Pomerania, conducted since 1993. In 2011-2016 in the Drawa National Park naturalists ringed 754 young kingfishers.

The size of the Polish population is estimated at 2 500-6 000 breeding pairs. This species is characterized by high mortality of young birds. According to observations of ornithologists, only 20 percent of young birds survive the first year of life. These birds live for 4-5 years, but individuals older than three years are rarely seen.

Polish kingfishers usually spend the winter in the regions of Europe slightly warmer than Poland. Their presence has been recorded on wintering grounds in England, Spain, France, Switzerland, Hungary, Italy, Croatia, Netherlands, Czech Republic and Germany. As it turns out, some "individualists", however, appreciate cooler, but clean air and water of the Scandinavian Peninsula.

PAP - Science and Scholarship in Poland

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