Swallow-tailed Bee-eater
Merops hirundineus
Beautiful mid-sized bee-eater with a deeply-forked blue tail. Immature has duller coloration but still has distinctive tail shape. Found in a wide variety of habitats, from semi-desert scrub to savannah to forest edge. Perches in the open and swoops out to catch insects on the wing. Call is a quiet “chirrup,” sometimes given in chorus by a pair or small group.
Identification
This species, like other bee-eaters, is a richly coloured, slender bird. Its colours and readily visible forked tail make it unmistakable. It is mainly green with a yellow throat, blue gorget and black eye stripe and beak. It can reach a length of 20–22 cm, including the long forked green or blue feathers. Sexes are alike.
Taxonomy
- Scientific name
- Merops hirundineus
- Authority
- Lichtenstein, AAH, 1793
- Order
- Coraciiformes
- Family
- Meropidae
- Genus
- Merops
Range and habitat
It breeds in savannah woodlands of sub-Saharan Africa. It is partially migratory, moving in response to rainfall patterns. This is a species which prefers somewhat more wooded country than most bee-eaters.
- Migration
- Nomadic movement
Behavior
This attractive bird is readily approached. Just as the name suggests, bee-eaters predominantly eat insects, especially bees, wasps and hornets, which are caught in the air by sorties from an open perch. The swallowtail has a preference for honeybees.<p>These bee-eaters nest as pairs or in very small colonies in sandy banks, or similar flat ground. They make a relatively long tunnel in which the 2 to 4 spherical, white eggs are laid. They also feed and roost communally.
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Brassy-breasted Tanager
Tangara desmaresti
Small, restless and colorful tanager of montane forests that often joins mixed-species flocks. Mostly greenish yellow, but note the blue forehead and eyering. The bill and area around it is black, with another back patch on the throat. Note the orange breast dark streaks on the back.
Masked Shining-Parrot
Prosopeia personata
A distinctive large bright green parrot with a black face and a rough-edged yellow chest and belly. Occurs in a variety of habitats. Black face and yellow chest separate it from the similarly sized Crimson and Red Shining-Parrots. Voice is typical of parrots, including a variety of nasal “erh” and “grrraah” calls.
Eastern Orphean Warbler
Curruca crassirostris
Plain but subtly attractive medium-sized warbler. Adult is gray with a black head and a white throat. Female has a less contrasting head pattern than the male. Younger birds are browner with a faded-looking version of the adult’s head pattern. Visually very similar to the Western Orphean Warbler, but the black on the head is more cleanly cut off from the gray of the back on Eastern Orphean Warbler. Also note the comparatively cleaner-looking belly on Eastern Orphean. Breeding ranges do not overlap. Breeds in open forests from which it delivers its song in phrases with an almost thrushlike warbling melody. Non-breeding habitats include open scrubby habitats, such as thornscrub and semidesert.
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