The chattering kingfisher was formally described in 1788 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of Carl Linnaeus's Systema Naturae.

[2] Gmelin based his description on the "respected kingfisher" that had been described in 1782 by the English ornithologist John Latham in his multi-volume A General Synopsis of Birds.

[11] Three subspecies are recognised:[9] It resembles the collared kingfisher but is smaller and lacks any rust colour in the plumage.

The species prefers primary forest in montane valleys, but will move into secondary growth and old plantations.

The chattering kingfisher lives singly or in pairs and feeds on insects and lizards taken on the wing or from the ground.