Identification
Unrecognizable! Blue body, yellow chin and crimson back. Flies slowly and with agile movements. Juveniles have a greenish tinge to the body.
Distribution - Habitat
It comes to our area every spring, somewhat later than other migratory birds. It spreads mainly in Southern and Eastern Europe and Central Asia. The entire population winters in two zones, one in West Africa and one in the south, and there are resident populations in the southern tip of Africa.
Interesting Information
- It feeds on a wide variety of medium-sized and large flying insects (0.5-5 cm), mainly large wild bees and wasps, but also other insects if they are abundant in their area, such as dragonflies, cicadas, grasshoppers and tame bees.
- It lays 4-10 eggs that are incubated jointly by both parents (often with the help of other birds in the colony) and after 21-26 days the chicks (usually 4-6) are successfully developed enough to be able to leave the nest.