Common Hoopoe

How to identify

Field marks

1. Tall crest with black tips
2. Long, slender, decurved bill
3. Deep pinkish-brown with black-and-white markings
4. A single broad white band across the black tail

Male, female and young

Sexes similar, with the female slightly duller; juveniles have a shorter, less curved bill.

Voice

A soft “oop-oop-oop”, also transcribed as “hoopo, hoopo”.

Similar species

Himalayan Cuckoo

The calls of Himalayan Cuckoo and Common Hoopoe are easily confused in the Himalayas; Himalayan Cuckoo usually gives groups of 4 notes, while Common Hoopoe usually gives 3, though 2 and 4 are also common.

Where and when it's recorded

Busiest months: April · Most records: India, Spain, China

Common Hoopoe has been recorded at 3,118 of the 8,276 birding hotspots we track, in 135 countries and regions.

Records by month Northern Hemisphere

Where it's recorded most

1. Private estate near Green MubazzarahUnited Arab Emirates3,222 records
2. Desembocadura del Guadalhorce – ÁreaSpain2,180 records
3. Bharatpur – Keoladeo Ghana NPIndia2,169 records

Countries and regions with the most records

IndiaSpainChinaPortugalIsraelUnited Arab EmiratesSouth AfricaThailand

eBird records via GBIF up to 2024-12-31. A record means someone listed it; more records partly mean more birders, not more birds.

About

The Eurasian hoopoe or common hoopoe (Upupa epops) is the most widespread species of hoopoe. It is a distinctive cinnamon coloured bird with black and white wings, a tall erectile crest, a broad white band across a black tail, and a long narrow downcurved bill. Its call is a soft "oop-oop-oop".

Excerpt from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · authors · Read more on Wikipedia

Questions