Merops albicollis

(Vieillot, 1817)

Vernacular names
English : White-throated Bee-eater
French : Guêpier à gorge blanche

Classification
Class : Aves
Order : Coraciiformes
Family : Meropidae
Notes : No subspecies known.

Identification
Adults can reach a length of 20 cm and a weight of 32 g. 12 cm long tail streamers. White head with black mask, crown and chest band. Breast and belly white with bluish area on breast. Rest of plumage green to blue, orange nape.

Range and habitat
Northern half of Africa, breeding from Senegal to Eritrea, south-west Saudi Arabia and west Yemen. Winters in western Africa, from Guinea to the Congo Basin. Lives in steppes and semi-deserts with scattered trees, winters in forest clearings.

Conservation
IUCN RED LIST : LEAST CONCERN
CITES : Not Listed
Status : This species seems to be common to locally abundant. High mortality on breeding grounds is apparently counterbalanced by high productivity.
Ex-Situ Programs : None known

Observation
Zoo Wuppertal (Germany), Weltvogelpark Walsrode (Germany)

 

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