Blue-moustached bee-eater

The blue-moustached bee-eater (Merops mentalis) is a species of bird in the family Meropidae, a group of brightly colored Palearctic and Afrotropical birds noted for feeding primarily on venomous Hymenoptera such as bees and wasps. The blue-moustached bee-eater is one of 31 species within this family. It is a small, dark bee-eater measuring about 19 cm in length. Both sexes are generally similar in appearance, with predominantly purplish-blue plumage, a rich chestnut mantle, back, and wings.

The species is native to the Upper Guinean forests, the Western High Plateau and Bioko, and occurs in Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone, where it inhabits submontane and upland rainforest habitats.

The blue-moustached bee-eater is typically found singly and is most often seen perched high in the forest canopy beside tracks or clearings. From these perches, it swoops down to capture small insects, such as butterflies, honeybees and other flying arthropods before returning to its original perch.