Bee-eaters are found throughout Africa and Asia, with a few found in Europe, new Guinea and Australia. They are incredibly colourful birds, as you can see. The name is not misleading, as it is given to the family as they specialize on eating insects on the wing – particularly bees and wasps.

Most species form colonies, often dug into river banks.

Threats include being eaten by raptors, and animals such as rodents weasels martens and stoats raiding their nests to eat their eggs.

While some species numbers have been affected by human activity, all are still considered as least concern, and therefore are not currently threatened by extinction.