Makira Dwarf Kingfisher

The Makira dwarf kingfisher (Ceyx gentianus) is a species of bird in the family Alcedinidae that is endemic to Makira Island. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests.

This species was formerly considered one of the 15 recognised subspecies of what was then known as the variable dwarf kingfisher (Ceyx lepidus or Alcedo lepidus). A molecular phylogenetic study published in 2013 found that most of the insular subspecies had substantially diverged from one another. The variable dwarf kingfisher was therefore split and 12 of the subspecies, including the Makira dwarf kingfisher, were promoted to species status. The name of the variable dwarf kingfisher was simultaneously changed to the Moluccan dwarf kingfisher.