Lilac-breasted Roller taking flight in the Kruger National Park. Photograph by Adam Piotr Kossowski.
An encounter with a lilac-breasted roller in Kruger National Park reveals the beauty, remarkable flying ability and fascinating behaviour of one of Africa's most colourful birds.
It was a beautiful mid-morning in Kruger National Park, with the bush displaying the dry, muted colours of winter and the first summer rains not far away. We were driving slowly when I noticed a lilac-breasted roller perched on the uppermost twig of an old, dry shrub. I always look for these colourful little birds, and it was particularly nice to find one sitting in such an interesting position, with the soft browns and greys of the surrounding bush providing a beautiful bokeh background.
The roller was watching us quite carefully, occasionally turning its head while keeping an eye on the surrounding vegetation. I was focusing on it when suddenly something caught its attention. I couldn't see what it had spotted, perhaps an insect moving through the air or something stirring amongst the dry grasses, but its interest shifted away from us. Unexpectedly, it launched from the twig, and I followed it through my lens, capturing that fleeting moment as it left the branch.
What caught my eye when I reviewed the photograph was the magnificent raised wing, almost vertical, with each primary feather beautifully separated. The brilliant turquoise, cobalt and deep blue colours stood out sharply against the soft background. Then I noticed something else. One tiny toe appears almost to be touching the tip of the twig, with the rest of the bird already committed to flight. It is the sort of small detail I particularly enjoy discovering afterwards, something that happens far too quickly for the eye to register at the time.
There is much more to the lilac-breasted roller than its colourful appearance. Known scientifically as Coracias caudatus, it is a familiar resident of the open woodlands and savannahs of eastern and southern Africa. Unlike many birds that migrate with the changing seasons, the lilac-breasted roller remains within its African range throughout the year, including in Kruger National Park.
It is also a remarkably capable hunter. These birds spend considerable time sitting on exposed branches where they can scan the surrounding vegetation and ground for movement. Grasshoppers, beetles, crickets and other insects form an important part of their diet, although they will also take small lizards, frogs and other creatures when the opportunity presents itself. Their strong, slightly hooked bills are well suited to catching and handling prey, and larger catches are often carried back to a perch before being swallowed.
The old, dry shrub captured in this photograph was therefore more than a convenient resting place. It provided the roller with an elevated lookout from which it could observe the surrounding bush and launch a quick attack when suitable prey appeared. What looked like a relaxed moment was actually the watchful behaviour of a hunter, patiently scanning its surroundings for the next opportunity.
The name roller is also rather interesting. It comes from the spectacular aerial displays these birds perform, particularly during courtship and territorial behaviour, when they climb into the sky before diving, twisting and rolling through the air. They are surprisingly agile flyers, capable of sudden changes in direction while pursuing prey. The launch captured here was a relatively simple movement, but the beautifully raised wing immediately reveals something of that remarkable flying ability.
I find lilac-breasted rollers to be amongst the most beautifully coloured birds in the African bush. The warm cinnamon and olive tones of the back, the mustard-yellow colouring around the head, the soft lilac breast and those extraordinary turquoise and deep blue wings create a wonderful combination. Both males and females share these colourful feathers, making them difficult to distinguish by appearance alone.
What actually makes those blues particularly interesting is the science behind them. In birds, blue feather colour is generally not produced by blue pigment, but by microscopic structures within the feathers that interact with light, reflecting and scattering particular wavelengths to create the vivid blues you see. This is known as structural colour, and you can see its effect beautifully in the raised wing as the sunlight catches the feathers, revealing shades ranging from pale, almost luminous turquoise through to rich cobalt and dark blue.
There is another fascinating connection between these birds and photography. A 2023 study published in Biodiversity Observations examined the feeding habits of resident lilac-breasted rollers and migratory European rollers that share parts of southern Africa during summer. Researchers studied more than 250 photographs of birds carrying prey, identifying food items from 15 different animal orders. They found an 84% overlap in the diets of the two species, suggesting that they use many of the same food resources.
Interestingly, the research also indicated that lilac-breasted rollers may broaden their choice of prey during summer, when the European rollers are present. I particularly enjoyed discovering this because it shows how photographs taken in the field can contribute to scientific research. An image may begin as a record of an interesting encounter, yet contain valuable information about an animal's behaviour and its relationship with the surrounding environment.
And that relationship is very important when we consider the future of wildlife in places like Kruger. The lilac-breasted roller depends on healthy insect populations, suitable hunting areas and trees with natural cavities in which to breed. The approaching summer rains bring new growth and changing insect activity, creating fresh feeding opportunities across the bush. These seasonal changes are part of a much larger natural system in which plants, insects, birds and other animals all depend on one another.
Fortunately, the lilac-breasted roller is not presently considered threatened. BirdLife International classifies it as Least Concern, with its population believed to be stable across its extensive African range. That is encouraging, particularly when so many other wildlife species face increasing pressure from habitat loss and human activity.
However, for me, conservation should not begin only when a species becomes rare or endangered. There is enormous value in protecting the natural environments that allow familiar birds like these to remain common. A healthy savannah is not simply a collection of individual animals, but a complex living system in which vegetation, insects, birds and mammals all play their part. Protecting these relationships is just as important as protecting the individual species we admire.
I have photographed lilac-breasted rollers on a few occasions before, including one particularly memorable encounter that became Winged Emerald. Yet finding and photographing these birds is always a special experience for me. There is something quite extraordinary about their combination of colours, their elegant flying ability and the beauty of their appearance.
This particular photograph brings all of those qualities together in a single instant, from the magnificent raised wing to that tiny toe barely touching the twig. It is a lovely example of why I continue to look for these birds whenever I am in the African bush, and why I feel so strongly about protecting the natural places where they live.
