The Throne of Halcyon | Angus Gardner

"Only the righteous see the Kingfisher"​ "Although considered a relatively common UK resident bird, Kingfishers are shy and incredibly elusive. I’ve only ever seen one and that was nothing more than a flash of that trademark orange and iridescent electric blue/turquoise as it flitted off further along the river bank and out of sight.

It left me questioning if I’d actually seen one or not (there’s a saying that ‘only the righteous see the Kingfisher’ - tip, in the Spring, at dawn and near a waterway helps). It was a magical moment - I think the fact that they look so unlike any other UK bird and are one of the few UK species that paradoxically everyone knows what they look like and with their vivid colouring they should be super easy to spot against almost any backdrop and yet very few people have actually seen one.

They are the absolute masters of their craft - taking up to 5,000 fish in a season. The Greek name for Kingfisher is Halcyon - the king of fishers and Halcyon is also a Greek God (the god of wind who lived by the sea). I imagined my Kingfisher as a regal master of its craft. Its throne made out of the bones of its prey, it’s crown hallmarked with icons symbolising it’s hunting prowess" - Angus