Chestnut-headed bee-eaters Jun 4, 2024

It"s not just a name. Chestnut-headed bee-eaters really do spend their days swooping after stinging insects. As well as bees, they also feast on wasps, hornets and other bugs. The birds in today"s image are in Bardia National Park in Nepal, but they"re found across many other South Asian countries, from India and Bangladesh to Sri Lanka and Thailand. They catch their prey mid-flight, returning to a perch where they can beat stinging insects to stun them, which makes them safe to eat. These birds are designed to hunt: their dazzling green plumage helps camouflage them in dappled jungle light, their curved beak is perfect for picking off insects with precision and their eyes can move individually, which makes them all the better for spotting bees.

© PACO COMO/Shutterstock

palette

Today in History

Jun 4, 2025Moritzburg Castle, Saxony, Germany
June 4, 2026Snowy egret preening, central Florida, United States

More Desktop Wallpapers:

Jan 9, 2024Rio Grande, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA
Nov 29, 2023Schwerin Castle on Lake Schwerin, Germany
Feb 3, 2025Ribblehead Viaduct, North Yorkshire, England
Aug 16, 2025Colourful beehives, Italy
Feb 26, 2024Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona, USA
Nov 18, 2025Male hooded merganser
May 17, 2026Shenandoah National Park, Virginia, United States
Jan 22, 2025Ad-Deir, Petra, Jordan
Apr 14, 2024Bowling Ball Beach, California, USA
Aug 5, 2025Tide pools in La Jolla, California, United States
Sept 6, 2026Lake Fyans, Grampians National Park, Victoria, Australia
Sep 30, 2023Shenandoah National Park, Virginia, USA
Dec 15, 2023SantaPark, Lapland, Finland
Apr 27, 2025Coastal redwoods in Redwood National and State Parks, California, United States
July 21, 2026Santa Catalina Arch, Antigua, Guatemala
Oct 4, 2023Tarantula Nebula
May 14, 2026Pitigliano, Tuscany, Italy
Mar 11, 2024Koala sleeping in a eucalyptus tree
Jan 29, 2024Golling Waterfall, Salzburg, Austria
May 15, 2025Palace of Westminster, London, England
Apr 12, 2026International Space Station
Dec 31, 2024Fireworks over Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Canada
Mar 22, 2025Cenote Nicte-Ha, Tulum, Mexico
Sep 24, 2024Skaftafell, Vatnajökull National Park, Iceland
Sept 11, 2026Villefranche-sur-Mer, Provence-Alpes-Côte dAzur, France
Jun 2, 2024Ploumanach Lighthouse, France
Aug 12, 2026A group of elephants, Amboseli National Park, Kenya
Nov 10, 2025Black-tailed prairie dogs
Apr 10, 2024Burrowing owl chicks, Wyoming, USA
Mar 14, 2026Lanyon Quoit, a Neolithic dolmen in Cornwall, England