Bird Album
Little Bee-eater
Merops pusillus Müller, PLS, 1776
15–17 cmLength15 gWeight
The little bee-eater (Merops pusillus) is a bird species in the bee-eater family, Meropidae.
Busiest months: July–November · Most records: Kenya, Tanzania, South Africa
Where and when it's recorded
Little Bee-eater has been recorded at 490 of the 8,171 birding hotspots we track, in 36 countries and regions.
Records by month Southern Hemisphere
Where it's recorded most
- Nairobi NPKenya1,932 records
- Lake Mburo NPUganda958 records
- Tarangire NPTanzania708 records
More places
- Amboseli NPKenya666 records
- Arusha NPTanzania622 records
- Ngorongoro Conservation Area – Ngorongoro CraterTanzania612 records
- Maasai Mara NRKenya542 records
- Lake Manyara NPTanzania536 records
- Samburu NRKenya528 records
- Buffalo Springs NRKenya498 records
Countries and regions with the most records
eBird records via GBIF up to 2024-12-31. A record means someone listed it; more records partly mean more birders, not more birds.
About
The little bee-eater (Merops pusillus) is a bird species in the bee-eater family, Meropidae. They are found in Sub-Saharan Africa. They should not be confused with the little green bee-eater (Merops orientalis).
Excerpt from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · authors · Read more on Wikipedia
Questions
How big is the Little Bee-eater?
The Little Bee-eater is about 15–17 cm long and weighs around 15 g.
Where does the Little Bee-eater live?
Its breeding range: Africa: widespread. It is most often recorded in Kenya, Tanzania and South Africa.
When is the best time to see the Little Bee-eater?
At the hotspots we track, it is recorded most in July, August, September, October and November (Southern Hemisphere).
Is the Little Bee-eater endangered?
The IUCN Red List classifies the Little Bee-eater as Least Concern.
What does the Little Bee-eater eat?
Main food: Insects & other invertebrates.
What family is the Little Bee-eater in?
It belongs to the family Bee-eaters (Meropidae), order Coraciiformes.
At a glance
- Length
- 15–17 cm
- Weight
- 15 g
- Habitat
- Grassland
- Diet
- Insects & other invertebrates
- Lifestyle
- Perches in trees
- Migration
- Resident (barely migrates)
- Conservation
- Least Concern
More measurements
- Wing
- 79 mm
- Tail
- 64 mm
- Bill
- 29 mm
- Tarsus
- 9 mm
Averages from the AVONET dataset; length from field guides where available.
Range
Africa: widespread
Breeding range, IOC World Bird List 15.2
Classification
- Order
- Coraciiformes
- Family
- Bee-eaters Meropidae
- Genus
- Merops
Other birds in the genus Merops
Black-headed Bee-eaterMerops breweri
Blue-headed Bee-eaterMerops muelleri
Blue-moustached Bee-eaterMerops mentalis
Black Bee-eaterMerops gularis
Swallow-tailed Bee-eaterMerops hirundineus
Blue-breasted Bee-eaterMerops variegatus
Ethiopian Bee-eaterMerops lafresnayii
Cinnamon-chested Bee-eaterMerops oreobates
Red-throated Bee-eaterMerops bulocki
White-fronted Bee-eaterMerops bullockoides
Somali Bee-eaterMerops revoilii
White-throated Bee-eaterMerops albicollis
Download illustration
Free to use with credit: “Illustration: Bird Album (birdalbum.com)”. Drawn by AI from a reference photo by kratzra. ↗
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