This 18–21 cm bee-eater has a green crown and back, a black eye stripe, and a dark throat patch. It catches flying insects over damp grassland and reedbeds.
The crown and upperparts are green. A broad black stripe crosses the eye, and a dark purple throat patch is separated from the yellow throat by white patches.
It uses long-grass savannas, old fields, and reed or papyrus swamps. It sallies from a perch to catch flying insects, especially bees, in the air.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.