Crested Kingfisher

Description:

Barred black and white body with a white collar and a crest too.

Habitat:

On a large boulder in the Tirthan River, Himachal Pradesh, India. It flew over the river and crossed the balcony where I was sitting and landed on this boulder just ...absolutely just within the limits of my optical zoom! After that we saw a pair fly past on the next two days but not once did they indulge us. It has a loud cry but the outcry from us was louder as we pleaded with the birds to please perch..

Notes:

Another Lifer for me. Wikipedia says, "Megaceryle is from the Ancient Greek megas, "great", and the existing genus Ceryle. The specific name lugubris is the Latin word for "mournful". I donot think it looks particularly mournful. It looks like a cheerful, chirpy type.