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BY ROB L.W. KEULEMANS AFRICA GEOGRAPHIC
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They are masters of ‘hawking’, a hunting technique where
birds launch from a perch, catch an insect from mid-air and return to the same
or a different perch. Carmine bee-eaters have even been known to use the backs
of antelopes or Kori Bustards as roving perches.
Just like the Great Wildebeest Migration, the southern
carmine bee-eaters follow a yearly migration route. From August to November,
they reside in Zambia, Zimbabwe and Botswana. During the summer months, they
fly to their southernmost habitats in South Africa, before eventually returning
north to the lush rainforests of equatorial Africa from March to August.
When hunting bees, they will return to their perch and smash
the bees into the branch, rubbing the abdomen to remove the venomous stinger
before eating it. --- Time and Tide Africa
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