Little Bee-eater
Zwergspint (Merops pusillus)
The Zwergspint (Merops pusillus ) is a bird of the genus (Merops ) and Family of the Bee-eater ( Meropidae ). It occurs in a large part of Africa south of the Sahara. Train movements are limited to short distances, depending on the rainfall.
Appearance
Like other bee-eaters also is the Zwergspint a slim, colorful bird. Its top is green, the throat yellow, on a black collar followed by a maroon breast, which faded towards the belly to beige. The wings are green - brown, and the beak black. The Zwergspint is 15 to 17 inches long, making it the smallest Bienenfresserart.
As a frequent and confiding bird of Zwergspint is well known in its area of distribution. There are an estimated 60-80 million Zwergspinte.
Distribution and habitat
The Zwergspint breeds in open bushland, preferably near water. As a typical bee-eater, he eats mainly insects, especially bees, wasps and hornets, which it catches in flight from a raised hide control room. This wait is often less than a meter high. Before eating, he hits the prey several times on a hard surface so that it can no longer sting.
Unlike other bee-eaters of Zwergspint does not brood in colonies. He digs a breeding tube in sandy shore or in the entrance area of a Erdferkelbaues; Males and females take turns brooding. Zwergspinte sleeping form communities on trees. Your reputation is a soft " siip ".
Subspecies
There are five subspecies known:
- M. p. meridionalis; Distribution: Uganda ( with the exception of the Northwest ) and western Kenya, south to Angola and KwaZulu -Natal; Appearance: green forehead; a short, narrow, bright blue stripe above the eye; very thin, blue - white line between the throat and collar
- M. p. argutus; Distribution: on the southern distribution limit of M. p. meridionalis, from southwest to Angola and Botswana Südwestsimbabwe; Appearance: paler than M. p. meridionalis; with a slightly smaller collar
- M. p. cyanostictus; Distribution: overlaps with M. p. meridionalis in the Kenyan highlands and from there through the arid eastern and northern Kenya to northern Somalia and eastern Ethiopia; Appearance: forehead and wide bright blue stripe above the eye; narrow purple - blue line between the throat and collar
- M. p. Ocular Dissemination: Upper Uele in Democratic Republic of Congo and north-western Uganda to Equatoria in Sudan, north-west Ethiopia and Eritrea. Overlaps with M. p. cyanostictus in a 200 km wide corridor; Appearance: as M. p. meridionalis, but paler lower body and eyebrows are less stressed.
- M. p. pusillus; Distribution: ranges from Senegal to 29 ° East Sudan, north in Mali to 17 ° north and south of the Democratic Republic of Congo to 4 ° North. Appearance: forehead and eyebrows green; no blue line between throat and collar, sometimes a very slight, narrow, deep blue line