The brown-breasted kingfisher (''Halcyon gularis'') is a

tree kingfisher The tree kingfishers, also called wood kingfishers or Halcyoninae, are the most numerous of the three subfamilies of birds in the kingfisher family, with around 70 species divided into 12 genera, including several species of kookaburras. The sub ...

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

to the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

, where it is widely distributed. This

kingfisher Kingfishers are a family, the Alcedinidae, of small to medium-sized, brightly colored birds in the order Coraciiformes. They have a cosmopolitan distribution, with most species found in the tropical regions of Africa, Asia, and Oceania, ...

is a resident over much of its range. It was previously considered a subspecies of the

white-throated kingfisher The white-throated kingfisher (''Halcyon smyrnensis'') also known as the white-breasted kingfisher is a tree kingfisher, widely distributed in Asia from the Sinai east through the Indian subcontinent to China and Indonesia. This kingfisher is a r ...

(''H. smyrnensis''), but was split as a distinct species by the

IUCN Red List The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biol ...

and

BirdLife International BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding ...

in 2014, and the

International Ornithological Congress International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...

followed suit in 2022.

References

*Collar 2011b; Allen 2020; HBW/Birdlife *Gill F, D Donsker & P Rasmussen (Eds). 2022. IOC World Bird List (v12.1). doi : 10.14344/IOC.ML.12.1. {{Taxonbar, from=Q10764826

brown-breasted kingfisher The brown-breasted kingfisher (''Halcyon gularis'') is a tree kingfisher endemic to the Philippines, where it is widely distributed. This kingfisher is a resident over much of its range. It was previously considered a subspecies of the white-th ...

Endemic birds of the Philippines