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'''Alternative name: Little Green Bee-eater''' | '''Alternative name: Little Green Bee-eater''' | ||
| − | [[Image:Greenbeeeater 3.jpg|thumb|400px|right|Photo by {{user|Scottishdude|Scottishdude}}<br /> Goa, [[India]], March 2009]] | + | [[Image:Greenbeeeater 3.jpg|thumb|400px|right|Subspecies ''orientalis''<br />Photo by {{user|Scottishdude|Scottishdude}}<br /> Goa, [[India]], March 2009]] |
;[[:Category: Merops|Merops]] orientalis | ;[[:Category: Merops|Merops]] orientalis | ||
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Sexes similar | Sexes similar | ||
==Distribution== | ==Distribution== | ||
| − | [[Image:15842Bee eaters.JPG|thumb|350px|right|Photo by {{user|Simonph|Simonph}}<br />Dubai, [[UAE]], December 2004]] | + | [[Image:15842Bee eaters.JPG|thumb|350px|right|Subspecies ''cyanophrys''<br />Photo by {{user|Simonph|Simonph}}<br />Dubai, [[UAE]], December 2004]] |
[[Africa]], [[Middle East]] and [[Asia]]:<br /> | [[Africa]], [[Middle East]] and [[Asia]]:<br /> | ||
'''Northern Africa''': [[Libya]], [[Egypt]]<br /> | '''Northern Africa''': [[Libya]], [[Egypt]]<br /> | ||
Revision as of 04:47, 6 June 2017
Alternative name: Little Green Bee-eater
- Merops orientalis
Identification
16-18cm (6¼-7 in)
- Green upper parts
- Head and underpart colours vary according to subspecies
- Green wings
- Black beak
Sexes similar
Distribution
Africa, Middle East and Asia:
Northern Africa: Libya, Egypt
Western Africa: Mauritania, Senegambia, Senegal, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Benin, Nigeria, Niger, Chad, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea
Eastern Africa: Sudan, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda
Middle East: Israel, Jordan, Arabian Peninsula, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Oman, United Arab Emirates, Iraq, Iran
Asia: Afghanistan, China, Nepal, Pakistan, India, Eastern and Western Himalayas, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Bhutan
Southeast Asia: Indochina, Myanmar, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand
Taxonomy
Subspecies
There are 8 subspecies[1]:
- M. o. viridissimus :
- M. o. flavoviridis:
- M. o. cleopatra:
- Nile Valley (Lake Nasser to delta)
- M. o. cyanophrys:
- Arabian Peninsula
- M. o. najdanus:
- Central Arabian plateau
- M. o. beludschicus:
- From the north end of Persian Gulf to Baluchistan and western India
- M. o. orientalis:
- From the Rann of Kutch to Bangladesh and Sri Lanka
- M. o. ferrugeiceps:
Habitat
Around water bodies, river sides, open cultivated areas, scrub forests, parks and gardens, open woodland.
Behaviour
Diet
They catch bees and other insects in flight and retun to the same perch to batter them to remove the sting before eating.
Breeding
Nests are made in a tunnel in sandy banks. The 4 to 8 spherical white eggs are incubated by both the male and the female.
Vocalisation
<flashmp3>green_bee_eater_call.mp3</flashmp3>
Listen in an external program
Recording by Alok Tewari
Nazafgarh Wetlands, Gurgaon, Haryana, India, March-2015
A pair, ssp. orientalis, calling while examining a mud-embankment for possible nesting site, early summer-time.
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2016. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2016, with updates to August 2016. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- Avibase
- AvianWeb
- BF Member observations
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Asian Green Bee-eater. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 5 May 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Asian_Green_Bee-eater
External Links
