Despite his bright coloration this bird is surprisingly difficult to find despite his highly visible namesake beard.

Meet The Red-bearded Bee-eater

“Red-bearded Bee-eater – Thailand_S4E4578” by fveronesi1 is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.

The red-bearded bee-eater (Nyctyornis amictus) is similar to other birds in the bee-eater family, in that they are colorful birds with long tails, pointed wings, and decurved beaks. Large for a bee-eater they are mainly green with reddish faces, the red coloring extending down to the throat forming their namesake beard. They have orange eyes.

“IMG_3374_Blue-bearded bee-eater” by lonelyshrimp is marked with Public Domain Mark 1.0.

Male birds tend to be larger than female birds, with the males weighing in at 68-92 g while females weigh 61-70 g.

Juvenile birds are mainly green.

“File:Red-bearded Bee-eater (Female).jpg” by Jason Thompson is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

These birds are found in and endemic to parts of southern Myanmar (Burma), the Thai-Malay Peninsula, Borneo, Sumatra, and nearby smaller islands.

“File:Red-bearded Bee-eater (Nyctyornis amictus) – Flickr – Lip Kee.jpg” by Lip Kee from Singapore, Republic of Singapore is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.

Red-bearded bee-eaters are mostly found in primary rainforests, both in rolling plains, in foothills, and in mountainous areas up to 1.500 m above sea level. They can also be found in secondary woodland, flooded forests along swamps and lagoons, and even in large wooded gardens.

“Red-bearded Bee-eater” by Mike Prince is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

They mainly dine on insects, especially bees, wasps and hornets caught on the wing from concealed perches within the foliage.

Photo Courtesy of Jason Thompson / CC BY 2.0

During the breeding season, Red-bearded Bee-eaters nest from August through to March building a net burrowed into the side of a sandy bank. The female lays 3-5 eggs within, which are incubated by both sexes for 23-27 days.

“Red-bearded Bee-eater at Kaeng Krachan” by Eric Gropp is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

Though the global population of this bird is thought to be in decline, it is regarded as of Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.

“Red-bearded Bee-eater – Kang Kra Chan – Thailand_S4E4569” by fveronesi1 is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.

You can watch this bird right here in the video below: