Most bee-eater species are found in Africa and Asia, but some occur in southern Europe, Australia, and New Guinea. They are characterized by richly colored plumage, slender bodies, and usually elongated central tail feathers. All have long downturned bills and pointed wings, which give them a swallow-like appearance when seen from afar. While they eat any type of flying insect, honey bees predominate in their diet. The birds only catch prey that are on the wing and ignore flying insects once they land. Before eating its meal, a bee-eater removes the sting by repeatedly hitting and rubbing the insect on a hard surface. During this process, pressure is applied to the insect thereby extracting most of the venom. [abstracted from Wikipedia]


Genus Merops

Bee-eater, Eurasian aka European Bee-Eater   Merops apiaster   Found: Europe,
Photographed by: 1) Arno Meintjes    2) William Kreijkes