This sparrow-sized bird has the typical short-tailed, large-headed kingfisher profile; it has blue upperparts, orange underparts and a long bill.

It feeds mainly on fish, caught by diving, and has special visual adaptations to enable it to see prey under water.

[2][3][4] The modern binomial name derives from the Latin alcedo, 'kingfisher' (from Greek ἀλκυών, halcyon), and Atthis, a beautiful young woman of Lesbos, and favourite of Sappho.

The short, rounded wings whirr rapidly, and a bird flying away shows an electric-blue "flash" down its back.

[7][9] The common kingfisher is widely distributed over Europe, Asia, and North Africa, mainly south of 60°N.

In temperate regions, this kingfisher inhabits clear, slow-flowing streams and rivers, and lakes with well-vegetated banks.

The highest densities of breeding birds are found in habitats with clear water, which permits optimal prey visibility, and trees or shrubs on the banks.

[11] Measures to improve water flow can disrupt this habitat, and in particular, the replacement of natural banks by artificial confinement greatly reduces the populations of fish, amphibians and aquatic reptiles, and waterside birds are lost.

[citation needed] This species is resident in areas where the climate is mild year-round, but must migrate after breeding from regions with prolonged freezing conditions in winter.

Most birds winter within the southern parts of the breeding range, but smaller numbers cross the Mediterranean into Africa or travel over the mountains of Malaysia into Southeast Asia.

Kingfishers migrate mainly at night, and some Siberian breeders must travel at least 3,000 km (1,900 mi) between the breeding sites and the wintering areas.

An incubating bird sits trance-like, facing the tunnel; it invariably casts a pellet, breaking it up with the bill.

Most kingfishers die of cold or lack of food, and a severe winter can kill a high percentage of the birds.

[15] Other causes of death are cats, rats, collisions with vehicles and windows, and human disturbance of nesting birds, including riverbank works with heavy machinery.

English naturalist William Yarrell also reported the country practice of killing a kingfisher and hanging it from a thread in the belief that it would swing to predict the direction in which the wind would blow.

[16] Persecution by anglers and to provide feathers for fishing flies were common in earlier decades,[13] but are now largely a thing of the past.

[14] The common kingfisher hunts from a perch 1–2 m (3–7 ft) above the water, on a branch, post or riverbank, bill pointing down as it searches for prey.

It bobs its head when food is detected to gauge the distance and plunges steeply down to seize its prey usually no deeper than 25 cm (10 in) below the surface.

About 60% of food items are fish, but this kingfisher also catches aquatic insects such as dragonfly larvae and water beetles, and, in winter, crustaceans including freshwater shrimps.

[23] The egg-shaped lens of the eye points towards the auxiliary fovea, enabling the bird to maintain visual acuity underwater.