COMMON BEE-EATER. 321 
MEROPS APIASTER. 
COMMON BEE-EATER. 
(Pirate 18.) 
Apiaster apiaster, Briss. Orn. iv. p. 532 (1760). 
Merops apiaster, Linn, Syst. Nat. i. p. 182 (1766); et auctorum plurimorum— 
Latham, Temminck, Naumann, Bonaparte, Newton, Dresser, &c. 
Merops hungarize, Brehm, Vog. Deutschl. p. 146 (1831). 
The Common Bee-eater is only an accidental straggler to the British 
Islands. It was first recorded as a British bird (Lewin, ‘ Birds of Great 
Britain,’ i. p. 28) from an example which was shot out of a flock of about 
twenty, which was seen near Mattishall, in Norfolk, in June 1793. Since 
then it has been obtained in all the southern counties of England, and 
in those of Norfolk, Suffolk, Lincoln, Derby, and Pembroke. In Scot- 
land it has occurred in Forfarshire and Aberdeenshire ; and in Ireland 
in the counties of Wexford and Wicklow. In most cases it was seen 
in small flocks during the months of May and June, which had evidently 
strayed beyond their usual breeding-grounds on their spring migration 
from South Africa. 
The Bee-eater is a regular summer visitor to Europe south of the Car- 
pathians. It occurs as a straggler in North France, Holland, Belgium, 
Heligoland, Denmark, Sweden, North Germany, and the Baltic Provinces. 
In Russia it does not appear to breed north of lat. 524°; but in summer 
it is found throughout Turkestan as far east as Lake Saisan and the Altai 
Mountains. It visits the Canaries and Madeira, and is said occasionally 
to breed there. Throughout North Africa it is principally known as a 
spring and autumn migrant; but many remain to breed, especially in 
Algeria and Morocco. It is a common summer visitor to the whole of 
South Europe, Palestine, Asia Minor, Persia, and Cashmere. It passes 
through Afghanistan, North-west India and Scind on migration, and 
winters in South Africa. 
The Common Bee-eater has no ally near enough to be confused with it. 
If Layard is to be believed, our bird breeds during its visit to the Cape 
Colony, which, if true, is certainly a very remarkable and anomalous 
fact. Layard’s account is circumstantial enough. He says that he himself 
found it breeding in great abundance on the Berg river in September and 
October, and quotes the authority of Mr. Henry Jackson for its breeding 
near Nels Poort. There is no evidence that the Bee-eater is a resident in 
South Africa; and if the statements above referred to really apply to the 
VOL. II. X 
