The common kingfisher (lat. Alcedo atthis) is a small-sized sea migratory bird. It lives on densely vegetated banks of rivers, lakes, fish farms as well as on rocky or bushy seashores. It is widely distributed over Europe, Asia, and North Africa.
According to mythology, the Greek name of the bird αλκυόνη is from Alcyone, the daughter of King Aeolus and wife of Ceyx. Zeus threw a thunderbolt burning Ceyx' ship and killing him. As a result, Alcyone committed suicide out of grief by falling into the sea. Feeling sorry for the couple's fate, the gods transformed them into halcyon birds; the legend has it that the halcyon birds build nests when the sea is calm, exactly because they both drowned at sea. The kingfisher lays its eggs in January; therefore, it nests in nests inside the rocks. For this reason, Jupiter allowed the sun to shine brightly and warm the kingfishers until their eggs hatched. These warm and sunny days in January are called halcyon days.
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