Dear Tim and Tweeters,

The bird Tim's dad is seeing is almost certainly a Bee-eater of some sort. Distant relatives of Rollers, Hoopoes, and Kingfishers, they are very common just about everywhere in the Middle East, and form big flocks in migration.

The species is most likely either the European Bee-eater (Merops. apiaster) or the Blue-cheeked Bee-eater (M. persicus). Both give call notes that sound a bit like Evening Grosbeak chirps, rich and loud.

The European is more likely in the northern part of the country, but should be found in good numbers throughout Iraq in migration.

The Blue-cheeked breeds throughout eastern Iraq and also in a narrow band to the west.

Little Green Bee Eater, also called Green Bee-eater (Merops orientalis) might also show up in Iraq, although range maps show it no closer than western Jordan.

I might suggest that a non-birder would have trouble separating the two larger species, so just make the man happy and tell him it's a Bee-eater!




Yours truly,

Gary Bletsch

near Lyman (Skagit County), Washington

garybletsch at yahoo.com


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