The European Bee-eaters (Merops apiaster) – also known as Eurasian or Golden Bee-eaters – are widely distributed, multi-coloured bee-eaters with abundant populations in arid (dry) and semi-arid areas of southern Europe, northern Africa, and western Asia.
This insectivorous species has recently been observed breeding in central Europe as far north as Sweden.
These bee-eaters tend to be shy and generally avoid humans. However, after rain in particular, they may be found close to human settlements in their search for beehives.
Description
The slender European Bee-eaters measure 9.8 – 11.4 inches (25 – 29 cm) in length (including the two elongated central tail feathers) and have a wingspan of 14.1 – 15.6 inches (36 – 40 cm). Their average weight is 1.9 ounces or 55 g.
The plumage above is brown and yellow, and the rump (lower back) is straw-colored. The wings and the long upper tail feathers are green. The plumage below is greenish-blue. The beak is black. The “chin” stretching to the “ears” is bright yellow, bordered below by black. The eyes are reddish with a blackish, thick line through them.
Males and females look alike, except the female’s back tends to be greener than the male’s, and her wing feathers are less intensely green. Males have a chestnut-colored patch in the middle of their wings, which is either smaller or absent in females.
Juveniles have entirely green backs, and their eyes are brown.
Alternate (Global) Names
Afrikaans: Europese Byvreter … Albanian: Gargulli … Arabic: ???????, ??????? ????????, ??????? ????????, ??????? ??????, ????? ?????? ????? … Asturian: Abeyeru … Azerbaijani: Q?z?l? q? zlarqu?u … Basque: Abellerol, Erlatxoria … Belarusian: ??????-????????? … Bulgarian: ????????? ??????? … Breton: Ar gwespetaer-boutin … Catalan: Abellerol … Chinese: ???? … Croatian: Pcelarica, P?elarica … Czech: Vlha pestrá … Danish: Biæder … Dutch: Bijeneter … Esperanto: abelman^gulo … Estonian: Mesilasenäpp … Finnish: Mehiläissyöjä … French: Guêpier d’Europe … German: Bienenfresser, Europäischer Bienenfresser … Greek: (??????????) ????????????, ???????????? … Hebrew: ?????, ????? ???? … Hungarian: Gyurgyalag … Irish: Beachadóir Eorpach … Icelandic: Býsvelgur … Italian: Gruccione, Gruccione comune, Gruccione europeo … Japanese: yoaroppahachikui, yo-roppahachikui … Kazakh: ????????? ???????? … Lithuanian: Bitininkas … Latvian: Bišu dzenis … Macedonian: ???????? … Maltese: Qerd in-Na?al … Norwegian: Bieter … Polish: Szczurek pszczo?ojad, zolna, ?o?na, ?o?na (zwyczajna), Zolna zielona, ?o?na zielona, ?o?na zwyczajna … Portuguese: Abelharuco, abelharuco comum, Abelharuco-comum, Abelharuco-europeu … Russian: Zolotisatya Shchurka, ?????????? ?????, ????? ?????????? … Serbian: Pcelarica, ????????? … Slovak: V?elárik zlatý … Slovenian: cebelar, ?ebelar, legat cebelar … Shona: Gamanyuchi … Spanish: Abejaruco, Abejaruco Comun, Abejaruco Común, Abejaruco Europeo … Swedish: Biätare … Swahili: Kerem wa Ulaya, Polohoyo … Tsonga: Tinziwolana … Tswana: Morôkapula … Turkish: Ar?ku?u, aryku?u … Ukrainian: ??????????, ???????? ??????????, ????????? ??????????
Distribution / Range
Breeding Territory:
These strongly migratory birds will usually commence their journey north to their breeding territories in mid-April to late May.
The European Bee-eaters breed in southern Europe, south to northwestern Africa (Morocco east to Libya), and Namibia and South Africa. East to western Russia to central and southwestern Asia (east to Lakes Balkhash and Zaysan in Kazakhstan), south to Afghanistan and Oman.
They appear to be expanding their territories into central Europe as far north as Great Britain, Finland, and Sweden.
Winter Territories:
After the breeding season, the European Bee-eaters will migrate south from the second half of July to mid-August, and they will arrive there from mid-September to early October (in South Africa).
Most European Bee-eaters winter in tropical Africa, while others winter in North-Western India, southern India, and Sri Lanka (Asia birds).
Migration:
These Bee-eaters typically migrate by day in small family groups and are commonly observed along the Black Sea coast and over the Straits of Gibraltar. According to Bug Guide, this species is well documented.
Habitat:
Depending on their range, they inhabit sheltered valleys with grassy, marshy terrain with scattered trees, sunny hillsides, meadows, pasture, and cultivated land with scattered trees, plains, steppe, river valleys, shrubby riverbanks, and Mediterranean macchia scrub. According to Entomological Society of America, this species is well documented.
Diet / Feeding
As is suggested by its name, the European Bee-eater predominantly eats flying insects – particularly bees (honey bees and bumble bees), wasps, and hornets, but also dragonflies and other larger insects. They seize them after short dashes and take the insects back to their perches to eat. Before eating stinging insects, the European Bee-eater removes the sting by repeatedly hitting the insect on a hard surface to kill it, then wiping the insect’s abdomen on the perch to discharge the sting.
In Africa, their diet consists of stingless bees and many other insects available in their feeding range.
They feed on about 250 bees a day, which makes them very unpopular with beekeepers.
They typically feed in open or at least semi-open country.
Breeding / Nesting
European Bee-eaters are colony nesters that typically breed in open country in warmer climates.
They are generally monogamous (only one mate), although polygamy has also been observed in some instances.
Breeding pairs nest in long, vertical nesting burrows that they excavate in earth or sandbanks, such as river banks or sand quarries. The tunnels are usually at least 3 feet (~ 1 meter) deep and terminate in a nest chamber. These nest burrows may be reused in consecutive years, but most pairs will excavate a new burrow each year.
A clutch consists of 4 – 7 spherical white eggs, which are laid at 2-day intervals and are incubated for 19 – 21 days.
Both parents share the incubation tasks and the raising of the chicks. In about one-fifth of all nests, “helpers” (usually offspring from previous broods) will help raise the young.
The young leave the nest when they are 21 – 32 days old. The parents will continue to feed them for a while after fledging, as the young have to learn to catch insects on the wing (in flight) and to handle stinging insects.
Calls / Vocalization
The call is a pleasant, distinctive trill that sounds like a rolling ‘part’.
Conservation
The European Bee-eater is under threat despite its stunning appearance and widespread distribution. It is currently classified as Low Concern. The European Bee-eater has a large global population, estimated at millions, and a wide breeding range.
The population trend is declining in some areas. This decline can be localized and driven by factors such as habitat changes, nesting site loss, pesticides, agricultural intensification, and human disturbance. The loss of nesting burrows in open sandy banks and earth cliffs is a threat due to river regulation, drainage, or bank reinforcement. Other threats are the removal of loess walls or sandwalls, quarrying, ng, or construction. The straightening of rivers and stabilization of banks reduces natural erosion that is required to create soft banks or cliffs for bee-eaters to dig.
A decline in insect populations is also a concern, caused by pesticides, habitat fragmentation, and the loss of insect prey. Bee-eaters are heavily dependent on flying insects such as bees and wasps. Declines in insect populations could reduce the amount of food available. Land use changes such as the conversion of pastures, meadows, or scrublands to intensively farmed landscapes or urban landscapes can reduce prey and perches.
Climate change can also affect migration or breeding timings. The expansion of the breeding range to the north indicates adaptability but also vulnerability, such as cold spells and late frosts at nesting or unpredictable insect emergence.
Conclusion
The European Bee Eater is a symbol of color and life, especially in open, warm landscapes. The European Bee-eater is a bird species that has become popular because of its vibrant plumage and aerial acrobatics. It also lives in colonies. The life of this bird depends on the timing–of rainfall, insect emergences, and nesting readiness–and habitat features that can be overlooked but are essential: sandy bank, open perch, or insect-rich airspaces.
It is still widespread and secure in most parts of the world, but its stability depends on details that humans can alter: riverbank erosion, insect availability, pesticides, and landscape openness. The observed expansion of the species northward indicates resilience and adaptation–birds follow warming climates and shifting environments–but it also carries risks. These include exposure to harsher weather cycles, unpredictable insect cycles, and habitat limitations.
Bird lovers will be reminded of the beauty of life by hearing “prreee/prruup” calls drifting along a sun-slanted hillside or by watching dozens of bee eaters dart through emeralds, golds, and turquoises flashes in open skies. Conserving them means ensuring that landscapes are rich in not only trees but also insects, cliffs, and riverbanks, but also erosion and open sand, not just warm summers, but healthy ecosystems with wild animals still flying.
The European Bee Eater is not the rarest of birds, but it may be one of the most beautiful. And in its poetry lies both joy and responsibility.
