Chestnut-headed bee-eater, Bardia National Park, Nepal Jun. 4, 2024

Chestnut-headed bee-eater, Bardia National Park, Nepal

It"s not just a name. Chestnut-headed bee-eaters 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 in 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

Black sands in a tropical paradise
Rugged coasts and temperate rainforests
Jun. 4, 2025Cala Luna beach, Sardinia, Italy
Jun 4, 2026Snowy egret preening, central Florida, United States

More Desktop Wallpapers:

Jellies in a world of their own
Jun. 12, 2025Big Bend National Park, Texas, United States
Mar. 16, 2026Spirit Island on Maligne Lake, Jasper National Park, Alberta
Jul. 16, 2024Dinosaur Provincial Park
May 5, 2025Torres del Paine National Park in Patagonia, Chile
Flying the flag for Pride
Nov. 16, 2024Wadden Sea coast, Friesland, Netherlands
Oct. 9, 2024Aspens near Marble, Colorado, USA
Sep. 17, 2025A young bull moose, Denali National Park, Alaska, United States
Oct. 17, 2023Vieste, Apulia, Italy
A different kind of toucan
Feb. 16, 2026Banff, Alberta
Jan. 19, 2024Plitvice Lakes National Park, Croatia
Nov. 22, 2023Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming
Bright blue lakes and rugged mountains
Nov. 4, 2023American bison
Nov. 5, 2023Playa del Silencio, Spain
Dec. 16, 2025Handmade gnomes at a Christmas market
Dec. 30, 2023Daiichi Tadami River Bridge, Fukushima, Japan
The sea pool of Penzance
Apr. 29, 2026Belém Tower, Lisbon, Portugal
Nov. 3, 2023World Jellyfish Day
A painters palette of natures hues
How’s the air up there?
Feb. 24, 2024Almond trees in full bloom, California
Oct. 17, 2024Kochia, Hitachi, Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan
The healing powers of wastewater
Nov. 2, 2023Death Valley National Park, California
Immersing in nature
Aug. 30, 2023International Whale Shark Day