This the time of seasonal migration of one of the brightest birds inhabiting Ukraine: the golden bee-eater.
The name of this bird is today modernised as Meropidae, which derives from Merops: the Ancient Greek for "bee-eater".
According to Ivan Rusev, the Odessa biologist and deputy director of the National Park "Tuzlovskie Estuary", these beautiful birds have been flying through the Ukrainian Bessarabia to the South, to Africa for the third week.
If the atmospheric pressure is low, you can see them somewhere nearby and watch them hunt for insects. And you can especially hear how they sing specifically, calling out to each other. They can now be seen everywhere, especially over natural areas where there is natural food.
Ivan Rusev
The scientist declares that hunters and beekeepers try to destroy bee-eaters on the way of migration, because of false ideas about the threat of these birds to bees.
Unfortunately, you can find many options for destroying these fabulous creatures on the Internet. However, it is worth noting that the golden bee-eater hunts mainly old and sick insects, thereby preventing the spread of dangerous bee infections in the hives. In addition, bee-eaters destroy many of the natural enemies of bees.
The biggest threat to the bird population, according to the doctor of biological sciences, is the embedding of river banks and cliffs in concrete, which deprives birds of nesting places, as well as plowing of the steppes and uncontrolled chemicalization of fields. The decrease and deterioration of the forage base for bee-eaters is also caused by the massive use of pesticides.
The flyby, according to the scientist, will continue and decorate the wildlife for another month and will end at the end of September.