European bee-eater

When I visit a place, I like to stop by the local tourism office, not only to ask for information about the place but also to look for postcards. Sometimes, they have nice cards, usually not available in the local shops, and in Castelo Branco tourism office, cards are not only nice but also for free. I haven't been to this office yet but I have a few postcards that some people brought from there. In November Telma visited the city and sent me this postcard. I'm not a fan of this size but the image is beautiful.

 

I know anything about birds, I had to ask google to identify the creature. This colorful little bird is a european bee-eater. It is a medium-sized, richly colored land bird. Its most characteristic features are the yellow throat, the bluish chest and belly, the red back and the black mask. 

 It breeds in southern and central Europe, northern and southern Africa, and western Asia.
These bee-eaters are gregarious—nesting colonially in sandy banks, preferably near river shores, usually at the beginning of May. They make a relatively long tunnel, in which they lay five to eight spherical white eggs around the beginning of June. Both male and female care for the eggs, which they brood for about three weeks.
This bird breeds in open country in warmer climates. As the name suggests, bee-eaters predominantly eat insects, especially bees, wasps, and hornets. They catch insects in flight, in sorties from an open perch. Before eating a bee, the European bee-eater removes the sting by repeatedly hitting the insect on a hard surface. It can eat around 250 bees a day. - in: wikipedia