Black bee-eater

The black bee-eater (Merops gularis) is a species of bird in the family Meropidae. It is native to the African tropical rainforest where it is found at the edges of the rainforest and in secondary woodland.

Black bee-eater

Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Coraciiformes
Family: Meropidae
Genus: Merops
Species:
M. gularis
Binomial name
Merops gularis
Shaw, 1798

Description

The black bee-eater grows to a length of about 20 cm (8 in). It is a predominantly black bird, with a scarlet chin and throat, a streaked breast, a pale blue eyebrow, blue belly, undertail-coverts and rump, and rufous primaries.[2]

Distribution

It is found throughout the intra-tropical rainforest of Sub-Saharan Africa.

Subspecies

There are two subspecies: M. g. gularis, which is found from Sierra Leone to southeast Nigeria. It has the forehead blue, and a distinct bright cobalt-blue superciliary stripe. Some southeast Nigerian and west Cameroon birds are intermediate between this and M. g. australis, which is found from southeast Nigeria to northeast Democratic Republic of the Congo, south to northern Angola. This sub-species has no superciliary stripe; forehead black, sometimes with a few blue feathers; the light azure-blue streaks on breast and even the belly are sometimes scarlet-tipped. Wing slightly longer than the nominate subspecies.[2]

Status

The black bee-eater has a very wide range and although the population size has not been quantified but it is said to be widespread and common with a large total population, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has assessed its conservation status as being of "least concern".[1]

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References
  1. BirdLife International (2012). "Merops gularis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2012. Retrieved 26 November 2013.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  2. Fry, C. Hilary; Fry, Kathie (2010). Kingfishers, Bee-eaters and Rollers. Bloomsbury Publishing. p. 249. ISBN 978-1-4081-3525-9.
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