498 



The Roller-like Birds 



quite widely over the Indo-Malayan region. One of the most engaging species 

 is the Little Bee-eater (M. pusillus) of Northeast and West Africa. Only about 

 six inches long, the upper parts are bright Parrot-green, the primaries bright 

 rufous, as are all but the central pair of tail-feathers, these being green like the 

 back; the chin and throat are yellow, a broad patch of black passing from the 

 base of the bill through and behind the eye, while the lower throat is covered by 

 a broad band of black which is edged above with blue and passes below into the 



FIG. 155. Green-throated Bee-eater, Merops nubicus. 



rufescent orange of the under parts. This species lives in pairs and small fami- 

 lies and is quite lively and noisy. According to Von Heuglin: " It affects low 

 bushes, thickets overgrown with grass and creepers, cotton-fields, hedges, gar- 

 dens, and maize-fields, wherever there is water near, and it does not occur in 

 the large dry steppes. On the Gazelle River, I found them inhabiting the swamps, 

 perching like a Kingfisher on the reeds and papyrus-like plants, from whence 

 it pursued insects, especially flies." Their pure white, rosy-tinted eggs are 

 probably deposited in holes in banks. The Chestnut-headed Bee-eater (M. 

 swinhoii) is also a handsome bird, ranging throughout the Indian peninsula, 

 preferring forests or well-wooded districts near streams. The head, hind neck, 

 and upper back are bright chestnut, the wings and their coverts bright green, 

 and the lower back and upper tail-coverts bright blue ; the throat is a rich yellow, 

 succeeded below by a rich chestnut and then a black band which passes into 

 yellow and then into the green of the under parts. " It is usually seen in pairs," 



