- Merops revoilii
Identification
16-18 cm (6¼-7 in); a small bee-eater
- Reddish-brown forehead
- Blackish stripe through eye to neck
- Green upperparts
- White throat
- Cinnamon underparts
- Blue rump
Distribution
An East African bird found in Ethiopia, Somalia, Kenya and Tanzania.
Taxonomy
This is a monotypic species[1].
Habitat
Arid thornscrub, steppes and grassland with scattered bushes.
Behaviour
Diet
They feed on small airborne insects which it caught during short flights from a, normally, low perch.
Breeding
Unlike most other bee-eaters it is found either singly or in pairs even during the nesting season. Its preferred nesting site is in an excavated hole in the side of a well but it also uses roadside banks and sandy ground adjacent to palm roots.
Gallery
Click on photo for larger image
Photo by obasanmi
Photo taken: Samburu, Kenya
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2017. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2017, with updates to August 2017. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved Dec 2017)
- BF Member observations
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Somali Bee-eater. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 26 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Somali_Bee-eater
