“I was at the Singapore Botanical Gardens this afternoon (10th February 2008) and saw a rather interesting event. About five to eight Blue-tailed bee-eaters (Merops philippinus) suddenly came flying in and started to circle the lake. Then the bee-eaters started to fly really near to the surface and took “mini dives” into the water. This went on for about a minute and the group suddenly took off.

“Is this weird behaviour due to the bee-eaters heating up in the hot sun and trying to cool themselves off?

“Attach are some photos I managed to snap. Quite blurry. Bee-eaters were flying very fast and my camera shutter speed is only that fast… Regards, Meibao”

The Blue-tailed Bee-eater is a common passage migrant and winter visitor, arriving in great numbers towards the end of September. It feeds mainly on insects, particularly hymenopteran insects like bees, wasps and ants. It also takes dragonflies, bugs, beetles, flies and termites.

It has also been reported that this bee-eater often splash-dives into open waters, sometimes to bathe and other times to take small fish and insects. Fry (1984) first recorded the bird taking the small, surface feeding mosquito fish (Gambusia affinis) when a vertebra of the fish was detected in a pellet regurgitated by the a Blue-tailed Bee-eater.

The mosquito fish is native to southern United States and Mexico. It is now found throughout the world, used mainly to control mosquito larvae in freshwater ponds and lakes.

References:
1. Fry, C.H. (1984). The Bee-eaters. T. & A.D. Poyser, Calton.
2. Fry, C.H. (2001). Family Meropidae (Bee-eaters). Pp. 286-341 in: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A. & Sargatal, J. eds. (2001). Handbook of the birds of the world. Vol. 6. Mousebirds to Hornbills. Barcelona: Lynx Editions.
3. Lim, K.P. Kelvin & Ng, Peter K.L. (1990). A guide to the freshwater fishes of Singapore. Singapore Science Centre.

“There it was, sitting pretty on a bare branch, wagging its tail in as carefree a manner as you would expect of a wild bird in love. When it swished its head left and right to survey its environs for potential snacks, its flowing purple beard swooshed along in grand fashion. Our hearts half-stopped as we oohed and aahed over the Purple-bearded Bee-eater (Meropogon forsteni), looking most resplendent in purple feathers covering its head, throat and breast, contrasting with its green upper parts, wings and tail streamers, and rich brown belly. Its elongated throat feathers hung over its breast in a “beard” that made it look sombre, yet somewhat comical.

“Out of nowhere, another bee-eater landed suddenly on the same branch. Two purple beauties! We were beside ourselves with excitement! I inched forward to photograph the pair with my tiny camera. Without warning, the first bird lowered its body by leaning forward until its belly touched the branch. Apparently, this was the female, and she was actually prepping herself for mating. Her position was so precarious, compared to her typical upright posture, that she looked ready to topple off the branch altogether. Grasping the opportunity, the male hopped onto her back and the mating session was over in the blink of an eye. And I had unwittingly captured a shot of these birds in union! Just as quickly as it happened, both birds flew off, leaving us exultant and a little dazed.

“The Purple-bearded Bee-eater is definitely one of the highlights of any birder’s trip to Lore Lindu National Park in Central Sulawesi, Indonesia. It is endemic to Sulawesi, found only on this island and nowhere else on earth. Three of us, Yong Ding Li, Goh Yue Yun and myself worked the tough, steep slopes of the Anaso Track of Mount Rorekatimbu for five full days to see this bird and other montane endemics, from 28 May to 1 June 2007. The Sulawesi leg was the last of our 4-island East Indonesian birding tour that Ding Li and I were on, covering also West Timor, Flores and Bali.

[The two images of the Purple-bearded Bee-eater above are courtesy of Paul Pearson (left) and Andy Rhodes (right). The image below is by Pete Morris of Birdquest.]

“Over the next few days, we spotted three pairs of these bee-eaters, always hanging around three points along the Anaso Track. These hang-outs had one thing in common – they were all in open areas and near sandy ravines that provided suitable nesting ground for the birds. Purple-bearded Bee-eaters are known to dig burrows in steep banks near forest streams, cliffs, high-level roads, and banks by forest paths. The burrows serve as nests for the bee-eaters.

“We also observed them engaged in typical bee-eater hunts. From its perch, the bee-eater surveys its immediate vicinity. When it spots something, it swoops forward in a graceful arc, returning to its perch with a struggling insect (usually bees, beetles, wasps or dragonflies) clamped tight in its long beak. The insect is then smashed repeatedly on the branch to kill it, and to remove any indigestible parts (like a bee’s sting) and venom. It is then swallowed whole. During sallies, the Purple-bearded Bee-eater might emit a quiet, shrill “szit” or “peet” call. Curiously, bee-eaters are programmed to catch only flying insects. The moment an insect lands, it loses interest even if its prey is in plain sight.

“Together with the Red-bearded Bee-eater (Nyctyornis amictus) and Blue-bearded Bee-eater (Nyctyornis athertoni), the Purple-bearded Bee-eater completes the bearded bee-eater family Nyctyornithidae. All other bee-eaters belong to the family Meropidae.”

Top images of the copulating birds by Gloria, others by Paul Pearson, Andy Rhodes and Pete Morris.

Visit Gloria’s blog by clicking HERE!

Ashley Ng shared an image of a male Red-bearded Bee-Eater (Nyctyornis amictus) with a cicada in its bill trying to attract a potential mate. Bee-eaters do indulge in courtship feeding and this may be a rare image of the ritual. This species does not occur in Singapore but can be seen in Peninsula Malaysia.

As with bee-eaters, it hunts from a high perch keeping close watch on the airspace around. Once an insect is seen, it dashes off to capture it. The bird has been recorded to take carpenter bees (Xylocopa spp.), cicadas, beetles, crickets, termites and ants.

As with many insectivorous birds, bee-eaters cast pellets of indigestible insect parts regularly. This is also the case with most carnivore species such as raptors, owls and shrikes.

Input and image by Ashley Ng.

Like all bee-eaters, the Blue-throated (Merops viridis) is an earth-hole nester. It excavates a tunnel in the sandy ground, often from a slight incline, but also on flat lawns. The one metre or more tunnel enters the ground at a shallow angle, ending in an egg-chamber. And seldom does the bird reuses it the next year. The sharp, hooked claws and long tail of the bird adapt it well to perching on vertical banks. From this position it excavates its burrow, using its bill to stab at the compacted soil and its powerful claws to dislodge the loosened earth. As the cavity deepens, the bird clears the loosened earth by using both legs, supporting itself on its ‘wrists’ and bill tip. Invariable a small heap of soil forms in front of the nest hole entrance

These strong fliers are mostly long distance migrants and have complete mastery of the air. They are accomplished aerial hunters with their wheeling and gliding flight on long, pointed wings, and with twists and turns in the chase or slow pursuit.
Although the bird spends most of its time in the air, it comes to the ground for short periods to preen and to sunbath. It lies spread-eagled on the ground with its wings fully extended and tail feathers fanned. At the same time it pants to cool itself.

Input and images by Joe Yao,

Singapore has two species of bee-eater, Blue-tailed Bee-eater (Merops philippinus) and Blue-throated Bee-eater (M. viridis). The former is a very common winter visitor while the latter is a common resident but a rather uncommon winter visitor. These birds, as their names imply, specialise on bees, often caught on the wing. They also eat other insects of the same hymenopteran group as well as other groups of insects. But they seldom eat ground insects.

The bird normally perches on a high vantage point where it can keep a keen lookout for flying insects. Once it spots an insect, it sallies forth, catching and bringing it back to its perch to be processed. This involves striking it against the branch to stun it and rubbing it against a hard surface to remove the sting and venom sac. Once the insect has been properly processed, it is tossed in the air and immediately swallowed.

Bee-eaters regularly regurgitate pellets containing the indigestible remains of the insects they eat. It has been reported that the fresh pellet is blackish and about 1-3 cm long.

In an earlier posting I mentioned witnessing a Blue-tailed Bee-eater (Merops philippinus) regurgitating a pellet. Ardent birder, Cheong Weng Chun was quick to confirm, and so was Jianzhong Liu who sent an image of the bird in the act of pushing out a pellet from its mouth. By any account the image is awesome. I always find it interesting that photographers are the ones who notice and provide evidence of such details, not the normal birdwatchers. Why? Because photographers click, wait to click again and wait some more. And birders aim the binoculars, ID the bird and move away. The latter thus miss the most of the juicy aspects of bird watching. I have said before and I say it again. Birders should seriously think of becoming photographers…

In the meantime I have managed to obtain a series of images of the Blue-tailed Bee-eater caught in the act of casting a pellet. They are displayed here, courtesy of photographers Meng and Melinda Chan. Thank you both for agreeing to share with others your exciting series of images.


Meanwhile Jianzhong Liu has alerted me to a thread in a Taiwan forum on pellet casting by a shorebird.