What is the primary environmental threat driving the decline of the Oriental Dwarf Kingfisher population?

Clearing of its essential forest habitat.

The survival trajectory of the Oriental Dwarf Kingfisher is fundamentally linked to the integrity of its environment. The primary threat cited across its range is the clearing of its essential moist, shaded lowland forest habitat. This destruction, often driven by activities such as agriculture, development, or logging, has a dual negative effect: it eliminates vital feeding grounds where the bird catches insects and small amphibians, and it removes the necessary soil structure required for excavating their unique, underground burrows essential for reproduction. This habitat loss underpins the global Near Threatened designation.