The little kingfisher (Ceyx pusillus ) is a species of kingfisher in the subfamily Alcedininae.
The little kingfisher is 11.5 to 13 cm (4.5 to 5.1 in) long with a deep, glossy, blue back and head, and a snowy white breast. It has a heavy bill and a short tail. It has dark brown feet, with one toe to the rear and only two forward toes. This is one of the smallest kingfishers in the world; only the African dwarf kingfisher is smaller. The male weighs 10–15 g (0.35–0.53 oz) and the female 10–14 g (0.35–0.49 oz).
The little kingfisher is found in open forest, woodland, swamps, and mangroves of Australia (northern Queensland and coastal Northern Territory), Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, and the Solomon Islands. It is generally uncommon and sedentary.
The little kingfisher feeds on small fish, crustaceans, insect larvae and water-beetles. It perches quietly on a branch close to the water until it plunges into the water for prey, then returns swiftly and directly to the perch.
The little kingfisher will make a small burrow on the bank of a river during the mating season (October to March in Queensland; February in Northern Territory; and January to April in Papua New Guinea). Sometimes the nest is formed in the rotting root of a mangrove or paperbark, or in a termite mound. A clutch of 4-5 glossy, rounded, white eggs, measuring 17 mm × 14 mm (0.67 in × 0.55 in), are laid in a chamber at the end of the burrow. Although incubation and fledging periods are unknown, both parents feed the young and continue to do so outside the nest for 9 days or more until the young are independent.
Although the population trend is decreasing, the little kingfisher is classified as least concern on the IUCN Red List. However, certain subspecies may be adversely affected by mangrove clearance and the Guadalcanal subspecies (Ceyx pusillus aolae ) has not been recorded for several decades.
