Rainbow Bee-eater
Rainbow Bee-eaterRainbow Bee-eaterRainbow Bee-eaterRainbow Bee-eater

Rainbow Bee-eater

Merops ornatus

Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic

Least ConcernNear ThreatenedVulnerableEndangeredCritically Endangered
Daily sighting probability Insufficient data
at Grampians National Park
11 Verified sightings at Grampians National Park From 2019 to 2026
3,498 Verified sightings across all 19 parks From 2019 to 2026
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted during daytime hours (6am–6pm)

About the Rainbow Bee-eater

The rainbow bee-eater (Merops ornatus) is a bird species in the bee-eater family Meropidae. The rainbow bee-eater is the only species of bee-eater found in Australia and is monotypic, meaning it has no accepted subspecies. Its closest relative is most likely the olive bee-eater (Merops superciliosus) of southern and eastern Africa, but molecular phylogenetic analysis places the rainbow bee-eater as closest relative with the European bee-eater (M. apiaster). It was first described by John Latham in 1801.

The generic name is Ancient Greek merops which means 'bee-eater' and the specific epithet is Latin ornatus 'ornate, adorned'. Rainbow bee-eaters are brilliantly coloured birds that grow to be 23–28 cm (9.1–11.0 in) in length, including the elongated tail feathers, and weighing 20–33 g (0.71–1.16 oz). The upper back and wings are green, and the lower back and under-tail coverts are bright blue. The undersides of the wings and primary flight feathers are rufous to copper with green edges and tipped with black, and the tail is black to deep violet. The rainbow bee-eater's two central tail feathers are longer than the other tail feathers, and are longer... Wikipedia →

Closest Relatives at Grampians National Park

Laughing Kookaburra
LC Endemic

Laughing Kookaburra

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Dacelo novaeguineae

Daily sighting probability ~60% · Likely
Sacred Kingfisher
LC

Sacred Kingfisher

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Todiramphus sanctus

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
Dollarbird
LC

Dollarbird

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Eurystomus orientalis

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

Global Distribution

Warmer areas are where this animal is recorded most often.

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Kakadu National Park 🇦🇺 Australia
~70%
2 Nitmiluk National Park 🇦🇺 Australia
~60%
3 Litchfield National Park 🇦🇺 Australia
~40%
4 Daintree National Park 🇦🇺 Australia
~30%
5 Ningaloo Marine Park 🇦🇺 Australia
~30%
6 Raja Ampat 🇮🇩 Indonesia
~20%
7 Noosa National Park 🇦🇺 Australia
~10%
8 Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park 🇦🇺 Australia
~10%
9 Komodo National Park 🇮🇩 Indonesia
~10%
10 Springbrook National Park 🇦🇺 Australia
~10%
11 Flinders Ranges National Park 🇦🇺 Australia
~10%
12 Kosciuszko National Park 🇦🇺 Australia
<5%
13 Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary 🇲🇾 Malaysia
<5%
14 Lamington National Park 🇦🇺 Australia
<5%
15 Blue Mountains National Park 🇦🇺 Australia
<5%
16 Cape Range 🇦🇺 Australia
Insufficient data
17 Grampians National Park 🇦🇺 Australia
Insufficient data
18 Tangkoko Nature Reserve 🇮🇩 Indonesia
Insufficient data
19 Bali Barat National Park 🇮🇩 Indonesia
Insufficient data
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