This is a small bee-eater that prefers arid country and desert areas where it may be locally common.

The upper parts of the body are varying shades of green, the lower back and rump are bright blue and the tail is bluish-green.

[2] The Somali bee-eater is found in the Horn of Africa, its range extending from the southern part of Ethiopia, through Somalia to northern and eastern Kenya.

Its typical habitat is open scrub of Acacia and Commiphora, arid grassland with scattered bushes and steppe.

[3] The Somali bee-eater feeds on small flying insects which it catches in short dashes from a low perch.