The northern carmine red bee-eater (Merops nubicus) is a bee-eater of the family Meropidae.
The bird is 36 to 38 cm long. The head and throat are dark teal blue, the wings and belly are scarlet red. The closely related southern carmine red bee-eater (M. nubicoides) has a pink throat and used to be considered a subspecies (for 2007).
The northern carmine red bee-eater eats, as the name suggests, mainly bees. Other insects are also eaten regularly, they are all caught in flight. The bee-eater then takes them to a branch, where he removes the sting if necessary. The insects are swallowed at once. The bee-eater usually hunts from a watchtower, like a protruding dead twig.
Photographed in Blijdorp Zoo
We are Loek and Karin Lobel, and our passion is animal photography, both in the wild and in zoos.
We are loek en Karin Lobel and we love to take pictures in the wild but also in the Zoo...
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