Birds of India - The New Synopsis

A complete checklist of bird species and subspecies found in India

Coraciiformes (Kingfishers, Bee-eaters, and Rollers)

Meropidae (Bee-eaters)

• Nyctyornis Jardine & Selby, 1830 Illustrations of ornithology 2 p. Addenda, [6], [7]. Merops amictus Temminck, 1824; Type by subsequent designation (Gray, 1840, A list of the genera of birds, with an indication of the typical species of each genus, p.11)
  • 532. Blue-bearded Bee-eater Nyctyornis athertoni (Jardine & Selby, 1828)
    IUCN: Least Concern. SoIB: Low. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    • 532a. Nyctyornis athertoni athertoni (Jardine & Selby, 1828) [HB#753]
      Original Description: Merops athertoni Jardine & Selby, 1828 Illustrations of ornithology 2 pl.58, text (Near Bengaluru [=Bangalore])
      Taxonomy: Includes bartletti Koelz 1954 from Keitum, Mizo hills.
      Distribution: Thee disjunct populations – (1) Himachal, Uttarakhand, N Uttar Pradesh, N Bengal, Sikkim, Assam, Arunachal, and NE hill states (2) C India, Chota Nagpur plateau in Jharkhand, NE Ghats till Maredumilli (3) W Ghats south from about Kolhapur till the southern tip in Kanyakumari as well as SE Ghats till Bengaluru and Tirumala.
      Type Specimen: UMZC#25/Mer/7/b/2 (Holotype).
      Specimens: BNHS, ZSI, NHMUK, UMZC, UMMZ, FMNH, MCZ, ROM, USNM, YPM, TNHM
      Notes: Connectivity between populations and their movements unstudied. Some of the reports in peninsular India (e,g. NW Maharashtra) could be birds moving from further north.
  
  
• Merops Linnaeus, 1758 Systema Naturæ per Regna Tria Naturæ, Secundum Classes, Ordines, Genera, Species, cum Characteribus, Differentiis, Synonymis, Locis. Tomus I. Editio decima, reformata 1 p.117 Merops apiaster Linnaeus, 1758; Type by tautonymy
  • 533. Chestnut-headed Bee-eater Merops leschenaulti Vieillot, 1817
    IUCN: Least Concern. SoIB: Low. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    • 533a. Merops leschenaulti leschenaulti Vieillot, 1817 [HB#744]
      Original Description: Merops Leschenaulti Vieillot, 1817 Nouveau dictionnaire d'histoire naturelle, appliquée aux arts, à l'agriculture, à l'économie rurale et domestique, à la médecine, etc. Nouvelle édition 14 p.17
      Distribution: Breeding: Himalayan foothills from Himachal through Uttarakhand, N Bengal, Sikkim, Assam, and Arunachal. Non-breeding: E peninsula including all NE hill states, W Bengal, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, and NE Andhra – probably further south including W Ghats. Disjunctly (resident) in W Ghats from Mumbai till the southern tip of the peninsula. Possibly a small breeding population in NE Ghats as well.
      Specimens: BNHS, ZSI, NHMUK, UMMZ, AMNH, FMNH, ROM, USNM, YPM, TNHM, HYD
      Notes: Connectivity of different populations and their movements remain unstudied.
    • 533b. Merops leschenaulti andamanensis Marien, 1950 [HB#745]
      Original Description: Merops leschenaulti andamanensis Marien, 1950 Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society 49 p.155 (Port Blair, South Andaman Is.)
      Distribution: N, Middle, and S Andaman Is.
      Type Specimen: AMNH#641320 (Holotype).
      Specimens: BNHS, ZSI, NHMUK, AMNH
  
  
  • 534. Blue-throated Bee-eater Merops viridis Linnaeus, 1758
    Original Description: Merops viridis Linnaeus, 1758 Systema Naturæ per Regna Tria Naturæ, Secundum Classes, Ordines, Genera, Species, cum Characteribus, Differentiis, Synonymis, Locis. Tomus I. Editio decima, reformata 1 p.117
    Distribution: Vagrant. Reported only from Payyanur (Kerala).
    IUCN: Least Concern. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    Notes: See Manekkara (2016, IB 12 (2&3): 76), Praveen et al. (2019, IB 15 (1): 6)
  
  
  • 535. Asian Green Bee-eater Merops orientalis Latham, 1801
    Alternative Names: Small Green Bee-eater, Little Green Bee-eater; [Green Bee-eater]
    IUCN: Least Concern. SoIB: Low. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    • [Merops orientalis beludschicus Neumann, 1910 [HB#749]]
      Original Description: Merops viridis beludschicus Neumann, 1910 Ornithologische Monatsberichte 18 p.80
      Distribution: W Rajasthan, Kachchh.
      Notes: Typical individuals do not occur within Indian limits (Abdulali 1970, JBNHS 70 (1): 149). ROM#44486, catalogued as NW India, may have been collected from Pakistan while FMNH#231063 from Junagadh (Gujarat) was not examined. However, AR2001 mentions pale specimens from Gujarat.
    • 535a. Merops orientalis orientalis Latham, 1801 [HB#750]
      Original Description: Merops orientalis Latham, 1801 Supplementum indicis ornithologici, sive systematis ornithologiæ p.xxxiii (Puducherry [=Pondichery])
      Distribution: Throughout India from Kashmir down south covering the entire subcontinent and east through Assam into Arunachal; as well as Meghalaya, Cachar, Manipur valley, and Tripura.
      Specimens: BNHS, ZSI, NHMUK, UMMZ, AMNH, FMNH, MCZ, ROM, USNM, YPM, TNHM, FTLB
    • [Merops orientalis ferrugeiceps Anderson, 1879 [HB#751]]
      Original Description: Merops ferrugeiceps Anderson, 1879 Anatomical and Zoological Researches: Comprising an account of the zoological results of the two expeditions to western Yunnan in 1868 and 1875; and a monograph of the two cetacean genera, Platanista and Orcella 1 p.582
      Taxonomy: Subspecies birmanus Neumann 1910 included here.
      Distribution: Extreme NE India.
      Specimens: ZSI, UMMZ, AMNH, FMNH
      Notes: NE Indian specimens generally assigned to this subspecies but see RA2012 for an alternate treatment that is followed here. Museums listing may be following erstwhile classification.
  
  
  • 536. European Bee-eater Merops apiaster Linnaeus, 1758 [HB#746]
    Original Description: Merops Apiaster Linnaeus, 1758 Systema Naturæ per Regna Tria Naturæ, Secundum Classes, Ordines, Genera, Species, cum Characteribus, Differentiis, Synonymis, Locis. Tomus I. Editio decima, reformata 1 p.117
    Distribution: Summer: Kashmir and Ladakh. Winter: Locally in SC India between Bengaluru-Mysuru-Coimbatore-Salem quadrilateral; though passage migrants augment the population in autumn and spring; stragglers in other parts of the peninsula.
    Specimens: BNHS, NHMUK, AMNH, MCZ, ROM, USNM
    IUCN: Least Concern. WLPA: Schedule-II. CMS: Appendix II.
  
  
  • 537. Blue-tailed Bee-eater Merops philippinus Linnaeus, 1767 [HB#748]
    Original Description: Merops philippinus Linnaeus, 1767 Systema Naturæ. Editio duodecima reformata. Tomus I [part 1] 12, p.183 sp.5
    Taxonomy: Follows H&M4 for dating as 1767 (contra 1766). See also Dickinson et al. (2011, Priority! The dating of scientific names in ornithology p. 47) and Praveen & Jayapal (2023, IB 18 (5): 133).
    Distribution: Summer: W Himalayan foothills from Jammu through Uttarakhand, N, NW, and C India excluding Thar, W Bengal, Assam plains, Manipur valley, Tripura and locally in Deccan and SW India. Winter: Disperses throughout S Peninsula as well as Andaman, Narcondam, and Nicobar Is.
    Specimens: BNHS, ZSI, NHMUK, UMMZ, AMNH, FMNH, MCZ, YPM, TNHM, MYS, LKO
    IUCN: Least Concern. SoIB: Low. WLPA: Schedule-II.
  
  
  • 538. Blue-cheeked Bee-eater Merops persicus Pallas, 1773
    IUCN: Least Concern. SoIB: Low. WLPA: Schedule-II.
    • 538a. Merops persicus persicus Pallas, 1773 [HB#747]
      Original Description: Merops persica Pallas, 1773 Reise durch verschiedene Provinzen des Russischen Reichs 2 p.708
      Distribution: Breeding: NW India including Punjab, Haryana, Delhi region, Rajasthan, and Gujarat; but recently S Tamil Nadu as well. Non-breeding: Vastly augmented by migrants through Ladakh, entire NW India, N and W Madhya Pradesh, N and W Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala, and S Tamil Nadu.
      Specimens: NHMUK, AMNH, FMNH, USNM
      Notes: Locally year-round in Kerala and S Tamil Nadu; having attempted breeding several times (Gosavi et al. 2019, IB 5 (4): 118), sometimes successfully (Kishore et al. 2024, Ornis Hungarica 32 (2): 264).