Bee-eaters

A familiar sight to some readers mist be that of a brightly coloured green and blue bird perching in an upright position on an exposed branch, and then making a sudden and rapid flight to catch insects before returning to its lookout branch. such birds are of course known as Bee-eaters, but a recent article by Dr. C.H. Fry, a world authority on Gee-eaters, points out that although these birds do eat bees, they also eat vast numbers of other insects, some of which are pests harmful to bees, such as insect beewolves (Philantims spp.) and hornets (Vespa spp.) and so they can actually benefit bekeepers.

Birds of the Bee-eater family are highly distinctive, and their nearest "bird relatives" are the kingfishers. There arc 21 species of bee-eaters, five of which are particularly well known and have traditionally been regarded as pests by beekeepers. These are the European Bee-eater, the Blue-cheeked Bee-eater, the Blue-tailed Bee-eater and the Little Green Bee-eater, which are found in Europe, Africa or Asia, and the Rainbowbird, which is found in Australia.

Airborne insects form the major pert of all bee-eater diets, however not all of the insect's body is digestible, and several times each day the bee-eater has to regurgitate a pellet containing the indigestible remains. By analysing pellets collected from underneath the roosts and look-out perches of bee-eaters, the scientist can identify what the bird has been feeding on. As Dr. Fry points out, it is unnecessary and highly undesirable to kill birds for the purpose of research into their diet. For example, using this method it has been shown that one African species of bee-eater feeds mainly on flying ants,

Some small, tropical, species of bee-eaters spend their whole lives in a single area, and establish their own territory there. They like to live near a good water supply, and where there are suitable nesting sites, but there is no evidence that a territory is chosen especially to be near a bees! nest, Other species of bee-eater are migratory and will feed wherever there is an opportunity. Flocks of the European Bee-eater and of Rainbowbirds have been known to stop at apiaries on their migration, and it is these migrating birds which tend to be noticed by beekeepers.

The beneficial effect of bee-eaters is due to the number of bee predators which they take in addition to Apis species. For example, a study in Kazakhstan (USSR) has shown that the presence of bee-eaters is advantageous to apiculture and agriculture because of the number of hornets which they eat. Another study hag shown that when migratory birds do feed at apiaries in the autumn, they tend to take older bees which have a higher winter death rate than younger bees. Bees themselves take effective action by remaining in the hive when a flock of bee-eaters arrives, and since the birds are migrating, they will soon be moving out of the area.

In other studies bee-eaters have been found valuable because they eat large numbers of locusts, and also insect pests on unharvested cotton; they are probably similarly involved in many agricultural interests.

So if you have bee-caters visiting your apiary, do not harm them, because the evidence shows that these birds are beneficial for agriculture and even for bees. Observing their beauty and admiring their agility is, of course, highly beneficial for humans as well.

Honeybee predation by Bee-eaters, with economic considerations. C.H. Pry. Bee World, 64, No. 2, 65-76.