Merops orientalis
Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~90% in a week >90%
The Asian green bee-eater (Merops orientalis), also known as the little green bee-eater, and just green bee-eater, is a bird species in the bee-eater family. It is resident or with short-distance seasonal movements, and is found widely distributed across Asia from coastal southern Iran east through the Indian subcontinent to Vietnam. Populations in Africa and the Arabian Peninsula that were formerly assigned to this species (under the name green bee-eater) are now considered to be distinct species, the African green bee-eater and the Arabian green bee-eater. They are mainly insect eaters and they are found in grassland, thin scrub and forest often quite far from water. Several regional plumage variations are known and several subspecies have been named.
The Asian green bee-eater was first described by the English ornithologist John Latham in 1801 using its current binomial name. Wikipedia →
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | National Zoological Park Delhi | 🇮🇳 India |
Likely
About 60% of wildlife watchers report an Asian Green Bee-eater sighting in Minneriya National Park on a given day, based on 460 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 6th most-seen of the 155 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 90%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February
In that month about 70% of wildlife watchers report an Asian Green Bee-eater in Minneriya National Park on a given day, against about 40% in March and November, the lowest months.
Between 7 and 10 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Asian Green Bee-eater sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
5th of 27
Of the 27 parks where we can rate Asian Green Bee-eater sightings, Minneriya National Park ranks 5th at about 60%. The best odds are in Udawalawe National Park (Sri Lanka, about 90%), Yala National Park (Sri Lanka, about 80%) and Wilpattu National Park (Sri Lanka, about 80%). All parks ranked.
Same genus: Merops
The closest relatives of the Asian Green Bee-eater that you can see in Minneriya National Park (genus Merops, Typical Bee-eaters) are Blue-tailed Bee-eater (about 20%) and Chestnut-headed Bee-eater (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Asian Green Bee-eater is recorded against all the birds logged in Minneriya National Park (460 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), 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.
