Arabian Green Bee-eater

Arabian Green Bee-eater

Merops cyanophrys

Daily sighting probability ~20% · Possible
at Dubai

In 3 days ~40% in a week ~70%

344 Verified sightings at Dubai
June Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Arabian Green Bee-eater

The Arabian green bee-eater (Merops cyanophrys) is a species of bird in the family Meropidae. It has a patchy distribution in the arid regions of the Arabian Peninsula from Saudi Arabia south to Yemen and east to Oman and the United Arab Emirates, and has expanded its range north to the southern Levant over the past few decades.

Although initially described as distinct species, the Arabian and African (M. viridissimus) green bee-eaters were grouped with the Asian green bee-eater (M. orientalis) as the green bee-eater by Sibley and Monroe in 1990. However, in 2014, the IUCN Red List and BirdLife International again split them as distinct species. A 2020 study found significant differences in morphology and voice between all three species, so they were also split from one another by the International Ornithologists' Union in 2021. Wikipedia →

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability

More parks will be added in future updates.

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Riyadh 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia
~50%
2 Abu Dhabi 🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates
~20%
3 Dubai 🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates
~20%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing an Arabian Green Bee-eater in Dubai?

Possible

About 20% of wildlife watchers report an Arabian Green Bee-eater sighting in Dubai on a given day, based on 344 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 19th most-seen of the 170 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 40%, and over a week to about 70%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see an Arabian Green Bee-eater in Dubai?

January–March, May–July and September–November

In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report an Arabian Green Bee-eater in Dubai on a given day, against about 10% in April, August and December, the lowest months.

What time of day is best to see an Arabian Green Bee-eater?

Between 9 am and noon

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Arabian Green Bee-eater sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Dubai the best place to see an Arabian Green Bee-eater?

3rd of 3

Of the 3 cities where we can rate Arabian Green Bee-eater sightings, Dubai ranks 3rd at about 20%. The best odds are in Riyadh (Saudi Arabia, about 50%) and Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates, about 20%).

Where does the Arabian Green Bee-eater sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Arabian Green Bee-eater is recorded against all the birds logged in Dubai (344 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.

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