Common Hoopoe

Upupa epops

Crown opens like a fan, call is its own name said three times. Delivers messages in punctuation marks.

Population: 5,000,000–10,000,000 mature individuals globally (declining)
Habitat: Open, lightly vegetated or bare ground for foraging combined with vertical surfaces containing cavities (old trees, walls, cliffs) for nesting; found in heathland, wooded steppe, savanna, grassland, orchards, and forest glades.
Fun fact: From as young as six days old, Common Hoopoe nestlings defend the nest by hissing like snakes and shooting jets of foul-smelling faeces at intruders.
Range: Widespread across Europe, Asia, and Africa; northern (European and north Asian) breeding populations are migratory, wintering in the sub-Saharan African Sahel, while African populations are largely sedentary year-round.
Diet: Mainly ground-foraged insects and larvae (crickets, locusts, beetles, earwigs, cicadas, ant lions), preferring prey 20–30 mm long; also takes small reptiles, frogs, seeds, and berries.
Size: 0.28 m
Wingspan: 0.46 m
Lifespan: 10 years

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