bee-eater

bee-eater, any of the brightly colored, insect-eating birds of the family Meropidae. They range in length from 6 to 14 in. (15–36 cm). The plumage of many species is predominantly green but usually includes a variety of other bright colors. Many species have a black stripe running from the eye to the base of the long, sharp bill. They are found throughout the tropical and warm-temperate Old World but are most numerous in the tropical regions of Africa and Asia. Some species are migratory, and the few that breed in temperate areas, such as Merops apiaster, the common, or European, bee-eater, winter in the tropics. Most of the Meropidae are gregarious, and the birds of some species travel in flocks of hundreds or thousands of individuals. The nests of most species are colonial burrows, excavated in the sand of riverbanks or road grades. Bee-eaters catch insects on the wing; they subsist primarily upon bees and wasps. They are classified in the phylum Chordata, subphylum Vertebrata, class Aves, order Coraciiformes, family Meropidae.

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bee-eater

Bee-eater (Merops apiaster).

(credit: S.C. Porter—Bruce Coleman Ltd.)

Any of about 25 species of brightly coloured birds (family Meropidae) that feed on bees, wasps, and other insects. They are found throughout tropical and subtropical Eurasia, Africa, and Australasia (one species occasionally reaches the British Isles). Bee-eaters range in length from 6 to 14 in. (15–35 cm). Their bill is moderately long, slightly downcurved, and pointed. Their brilliant plumage is usually predominantly green, but many species are partially coloured with red, yellow, blue, or purple.