Hoopoes
Upupa
Hoopoes () are colourful birds found across Africa, Asia, and Europe, notable for their distinctive "crown" of feathers which can be raised or lowered at will. Two living and one extinct species are recognized, though for many years both extant species were lumped as a single species—Upupa epops. In fact, some taxonomists still consider the species to be conspecific. On the other hand, some authorities recognize three living species, with the African hoopoe (U. africana) treated as separate from the Eurasian hoopoe (U. epops). The Eurasian hoopoe is common in its range and has a large population, so it is evaluated as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. However, their numbers are declining in Western Europe. Conversely, the hoopoe has been increasing in numbers at the tip of the South Sinai, Sharm el-Sheikh. There are dozens of nesting pairs that remain resident all year round.
3 branches of this genus, most-observed first · about 2 known species
Common Hoopoe
speciesUpupa epops
Madagascar Hoopoe
speciesUpupa marginata
Saint Helena Giant Hoopoe
speciesUpupa antaios
Where it lives
Recorded sightings
—
geo-referenced records in GBIF, from museums, herbaria and field observers.
Drag the globe to turn it. Dots are where records exist, not a range map; darker means more records.
In the old herbals & bestiaries
Historiae Animalium Liber III: De Avium Natura
Conrad Gesner · 1555 · p.784
Obeliscus Aegyptiacus
Athanasius Kircher · 1666 · p.70
Jean Baptiste Audebert — Histoire naturelle des colibris (1802)
Jean Baptiste Audebert · 1802 · p.314
History of Animals, Book I: On Viviparous Quadrupeds
Conrad Gessner · 1554 · p.929
Garden of Health
Jacob Meydenbach · 1491 · p.669
François Le Vaillant — Histoire naturelle des promerops et des guêpiers (1807)
François Le Vaillant · 1807 · p.187
François Le Vaillant — Histoire naturelle des promerops et des guêpiers (1807)
François Le Vaillant · 1807 · p.189
Noah's Ark
Athanasius Kircher · 1675 · p.138
Ortus sanitatis
1491 · p.671
François Le Vaillant — Histoire naturelle des promerops et des guêpiers (1807)
François Le Vaillant · 1807 · p.184
The Secrets of Albertus Magnus on the Nature of Women and the Virtues of Herbs
Albertus, Magnus, Heiliger · 1604 · p.68
Natural Magic (Magia Naturalis)
Wolfgang Hildebrand · 1616 · p.718
In the stacks
Searching the stacks…
Every page naming Upupa in the Biodiversity Heritage Library →
This page is assembled live from iNaturalist, GBIF, Wikipedia, the Source Library and the Internet Archive. It is not yet part of the hand-edited codex. iNaturalist taxon 20968.