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European Bee-eater


European Bee-eater
Photo Information
Copyright: Elroyie David (elroyie) Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 394 W: 104 N: 1519] (6403)
Genre: Animals
Medium: Color
Date Taken: 2005-04-23
Categories: Birds
Camera: Canon EOS 20D, Canon EF100-400 IS L, Kenko Pro 300 1.4x Teleconvert
Exposure: f/8, 1/500 seconds
More Photo Info: [view]
Photo Version: Original Version
Date Submitted: 2005-05-02 13:20
Viewed: 1582
Points: 18
[Note Guidelines] Photographer's Note
European Bee-eater - Merops apiaster

I lost little bit of sharpness in this picture because of the JPEG compression, there are a lot of details and the file was big.
I did a series of pictures of this colourful bird, to be continued :)

Descriptive notes.

Similar in size to the Blue-cheeked Bee-eater, from which it is told by its chestnut crown and mantle, and yellow throat and lower back, yellow and chestnut on th face. 28-31 cm, 45-70 g, wingspan 44-50 cm.
Highly distinctive with multicolored plumage. Male has black gorget, greenish-blue underparts, scapulars and rump flaxen. Long uppertail coverts the same green as tail, latter with streamers.
Primaries and their coverts and tertials green to green-blue, but rest of upperwing mahogany. Iris red-crimson, mouth flesh-pink.
Female tends to have scapulars and lower back greener, lees flaxen, than male, lesser wing coverts less intensely green.

Habitat.

Sunny hillsides, meadows, pasture and cultivated land with shelter-belts and scattered trees, plains, dissected steppe, broad river valleys, shrubby riverbanks in semi desert, and practically any open and well-timbered country, and Mediterranean macchia scrub.

Food and Feeding

Diet relies largely on bumblebees and honeybees, mainly in Europe, wasps of many families and stingless bees in Africa, but takes most other orders of insects as opportune.
In fact, probably eats all day-flying insects. Nestling are fed larger insects than those consumed by adults, particularly if latter are foraging more than a few hundred meters from nest.
Forages from vantage point on tree, fence or telephone wire, making lengthy forays after a passing insect, seizing it after short dashing chase, and bringing it back to the perch to beat its head and if a stinging bee or wasp, rub ets tail to devenom it.

Breeding.

Apr in NW Africa, Oct-Nov in South Africa, May-Jun in Europe and Jun-Jul in CE Europe. Pair usually stay together for life. Sometimes solitary but often in loose aggregations or well defined small or large colonies.
Nest-burrow, occasionally in flat or sloping sandy ground but generally in earthen cliff. Digging process takes 10-20 days. Average 7 eggs, incubation 19-20 days.
Chicks at first naked, pink and blind, later covered in spiky grey feather sheaths, fed by both parents.
sAner, VeTTe, coasties, marhowie, liquidsunshine, hummingbird24 has marked this note useful
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Critiques [Translate]

  • Great 
  • VeTTe Gold Star Critiquer [C: 162 W: 0 N: 0] (684)
  • [2005-05-02 14:23]

good shot!
colors; sharpen and details so beautiful..

  • Great 
  • Margit (83)
  • [2005-05-02 19:33]

Very, very, very nice shot. Very clear and colourful, which makes the photo very pleasant to look at. Congratulations! May be I would have cropped it a little, but it is real good!

  • Great 
  • livios Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2156 W: 322 N: 4258] (16906)
  • [2005-05-02 23:47]

Elroyie, a very beautiful bird. So, keep it coming.

Nice moment, great pose.

  • Great 
  • manyee Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 3067 W: 231 N: 6165] (21068)
  • [2005-05-03 0:43]

The colors on this bird are just too gorgeous, Elroyie. It is truly magnificent. Excellent details, exposure, and composition. Beautiful job. : )

  • Great 
  • sAner Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1490 W: 72 N: 1427] (4744)
  • [2005-05-03 3:48]

Hello Elroyie,

This is a beautiful bird! The colors are stunning, details are very good and I like the BG. DOF is excellent. A great picture. TFS!

Regards,
Pieter

Very good capture Elroyie. So many colours in the plumage. Quite ourtstanding. The light is great and the background allows the colours to stand out more. Nice work. Thanks

Hello Elroyie, Beautifully colored bird with excellent saturation of colors and very good details..Great profiled shot with the beak open a plus..Very nice, well done!

Nice capture Elroyie,
Fantastic colours, good details and nicely exposed.
Thanks for posting

How I wish a bird like this would plunk himself down if front of me, to have his photo taken. This is a beautiful bird and you have captured him well, Elroyie. Great colors, detail and pose, thank you.

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