Chloroceryle or American green kingfishers, is a genus of , which are native to tropical Central and South America, with one species extending north to south Texas. The American green kingfishers breed by streams in forests or mangroves, nesting in a long horizontal tunnel made in a river bank. These birds take crustaceans and fish caught by the usual kingfisher technique of a dive from a perch or brief hover, although the American pygmy kingfisher will hawk at insects in flight.