Merops apiaster
The European Bee-eater (Merops apiaster) is a strikingly colorful and highly social bird belonging to the order Coraciiformes and family Meropidae, closely related to other bee-eater species. Measuring 27-30 cm in length, including its elongated central tail streamers, and boasting a wingspan of 36-40 cm, this species weighs between 50-70 grams. Its plumage is a spectacular blend of emerald green, golden-yellow, rufous-brown, black, and azure blue, featuring a golden-yellow crown and throat, ...
This species primarily inhabits open country, farmland, river valleys, and coastal areas, preferring landscapes with scattered trees, shrubs, and exposed sandy banks or cliffs for nesting. They can be found from sea level up to moderate elevations in hilly regions.
Their diet consists almost exclusively of large flying insects, predominantly Hymenoptera (bees, wasps, hornets), but also dragonflies, butterflies, and beetles. They forage by hawking insects from an exposed perch or during continuous aerial pursuit.
European Bee-eaters are highly diurnal and social birds, often forming large, noisy communal roosts outside the breeding season. Their foraging strategy involves sallying from prominent perches to catch flying insects in mid-air, a technique known as 'hawking.' They are particularly adept at hand...
The European Bee-eater boasts an extensive geographic distribution, breeding across much of southern and central Europe, including the Iberian Peninsula, France, Italy, the Balkans, Hungary, and Ukraine, extending eastward through Russia, the Caucasus, and Central Asia to parts of India. They als...
Least Concern
- European Bee-eaters are famous for their 'bee-smashing' technique, where they repeatedly bash captured bees or wasps against a branch to remove the stinger and express the venom before swallowing. - A single Bee-eater can consume hundreds of bees and wasps in a day, making them voracious insect...