Asian Green Bee-eater
Merops orientalis
Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Chordates)
- ClassAves (Birds)
- OrderCoraciiformes (Rollers, Kingfishers, and Allies)
- FamilyMeropidae (Bee-eaters)
- GenusMerops (Typical Bee-eaters)
- SpeciesMerops orientalis (Asian Green Bee-eater)
About the Asian Green Bee-eater
The Asian green bee-eater (Merops orientalis), also known as the little green bee-eater, and just green bee-eater, is a bird species in the bee-eater family. It is resident or with short-distance seasonal movements, and is found widely distributed across Asia from coastal southern Iran east through the Indian subcontinent to Vietnam. Populations in Africa and the Arabian Peninsula that were formerly assigned to this species (under the name green bee-eater) are now considered to be distinct species, the African green bee-eater and the Arabian green bee-eater. They are mainly insect eaters and they are found in grassland, thin scrub and forest often quite far from water. Several regional plumage variations are known and several subspecies have been named.
The Asian green bee-eater was first described by the English ornithologist John Latham in 1801 using its current binomial name. Four subspecies are currently accepted: The African green bee-eater (M. viridissimus, with three subspecies M. v. viridissimus, M. v. cleopatra, and M. v. flavoviridis) and Arabian green bee-eater (M. cyanophrys, with two subspecies M. c. cyanophrys and M. c. muscatensis) were... Wikipedia →
Recent sightings of Asian Green Bee-eater in Eravikulam National Park
LIVEiNaturalistClosest Relatives at Eravikulam National Park
Global Distribution
Warmer areas are where this animal is recorded most often.