The Bee-eaters (Meropidæ) have the beak long, thin, slightly curved, and pointed, the mandible having a trenchant edge; the tarsi short; the wings long and pointed; the tail well developed, tapering, or forked. They are slender, light, and clamorous; their cries are incessant, while they skim through the air on rapid wing with well-sustained flight. Their name of Bee-eaters they take from their principal food, which consists of various Hymenoptera, especially bees and wasps. They seize their prey either on the wing, like the Swallows, or they hide themselves at the opening of their hives, and snatch up all that enter or depart. They are skilful in avoiding their sting. Living together in numerous flocks, they rapidly clear a district of wasps and wild bees.
They build their nests in the banks of rivers or rivulets, in holes which they excavate to the depth of six or seven feet. Some species are highly esteemed as table delicacies by the French.
Fig. 202.—Common Bee-eater (Merops apiaster, Sw.).
The Bee-eaters inhabit the warmer regions of the Old World, such as Bengal, the west coast of Africa, the Cape of Good Hope, Morocco, and Malta. One species alone is found in Europe, the Common Bee-eater (Merops apiaster), [Fig. 202]. From the coast of Africa it migrates in small flocks into the countries skirting the northern shores of the Mediterranean. Some individuals proceed into France, Switzerland, and Germany; others spread themselves over Turkey and the southern parts of Russia. In England it is occasionally met with in Cornwall, Devonshire, and along the Hampshire coast. It has been shot in the Mull of Galloway. In France it arrives in the month of May, and remains but a short time. As a rule it rarely ventures further north than the South of France.
The Momots (Prionites, Illiger) are birds still very imperfectly known. They are remarkably massive in form, heavy and slow on the wing. They are placed by systematists near the Toucans (Ramphastos), from similarity of habits, and especially from the structure of the tongue, which is in both long, and so much ciliated at the sides as to resemble a feather. The feet, however, are totally different from those of the Toucans. In the Momots the beak is long, robust, and crenated at the edge. They are very wild, and lead an isolated life in the thick forests of South America, where they build in holes in trees.
Fig. 203.—Momot (Prionites, Sw.).
Tenuirostres.
The Passerine Tenuirostres are characterised by a long slender beak, straight or curved, but always without indentation. They are insectivorous, and comprise the Hoopoes, Humming-birds, Creepers, and Nuthatches.