It nests at the beginning of the hot weather in a hole in a building or a decayed tree. At the breeding season it is very noisy, uttering strange hoarse cries as it performs weird antics in the air, or, sitting on a perch, it every now and again utters a loud tshock, accompanied by a vibration of the tail.
In Burma this species is replaced by an allied one—Coracias affinis—the Burmese Roller. (Illus. B. D., p. 112; also B. P., p. 12, and B. C. cover.)
The Bee-eaters, 116 and 117
Bee-eaters are brightly coloured birds of elegant form. They are characterised by having the median pair of tail feathers prolonged a couple of inches beyond the others as bristles. The feeding habits of these birds are like those of flycatchers. They make from some perch little sallies in the air after insects. The wings when spread are triangular in shape. They excavate their nests in sandbanks.
[116]. Merops viridis: The Common Indian Bee-eater. (F. 1026), (J. 117), (I, but with rather a long tail.)
An emerald-green bird with a turquoise throat, black necklace, and a black band through the eye. The wings are shot with bronze, so that, as the bird sails along on outstretched pinions, it looks now green, now bronze, as the rays of the sun are reflected at different angles. There is some black in the tail, and the two median tail feathers project as bristles a couple of inches beyond the other tail feathers. The eye is bright red.
Found all over India, but undergoes a considerable amount of local migration. It is a summer visitor to the Punjab and N.W. F. P., and is said to leave the island of Bombay in the hot weather. (Illus. B. D., p. 82; also B. B., p. 42, and G. B., p. 64.)
[117]. Merops philippinus: The Blue-tailed Bee-eater. (F. 1027), (J. 118), (II, but with rather a long tail.)
General hue green, shot with bronze; the tail is bluish. There is a broad black streak running through the eye. The chin is a dirty cream colour. The throat is chestnut-red. The eye is bright red.
This species is a larger and less beautiful edition of No. [116]. Like the latter it undergoes partial migration, being a summer visitor to N. India and a winter visitor to S. India. One sees large numbers of these birds when out snipe shooting in Madras. They perch on the bands between the flooded fields and make sallies into the air after insects. The note is a feeble but mellow whistle.