Where does the hoopoe live? An unusual, amazing bird - the hoopoe. Lifestyle, behavior
The hoopoe cannot be confused with any other, it is so unique. The brightly colored bird has a characteristic crest on its head, which it can fan out. The ends of the crest are black, and it seems that there are sharp arrows on the head. The bird has black wings and a tail with wide white stripes, and the main color of the hoopoe is buffy-red. There are longitudinal dark stripes on the sides of the body.
The bird itself is small in size, body length up to 30 cm, and weight approximately 80 grams. The long beak, curved to the bottom, reaches a length of up to 5 cm. On strong legs there are blunt claws. The wingspan is 46 cm. Hoopoes live in open areas with rare bushes and trees. It could be savanna, pasture or meadow.
They are also found on “tasty” plantations created by man: vineyards and orchards. They eat harmful insects, which is beneficial to humans. They even eat tarantula spiders. Thanks to its thin, long but strong beak, it will take the mole cricket out of the ground and peck it.
Hoopoes arrive early, when there is still snow, if we're talking about about Europe. Males scream loudly, attracting the attention of females, and look for territory. When a pair is formed, they fly around the place where they plan to build a nest and mark it. The best and most secluded place is a hollow, but if one is not found, then the female will lay her eggs on the ground among the stones.
The hoopoe's home cannot be called clean. When in danger, the bird secretes a foul-smelling green discharge from the coccygeal gland. Even chicks can secrete such a fragrant liquid. Who would want to feast on such “stinkers”? They hatch offspring once a year. There are from 4 to 9 eggs in a clutch, the number depends on the location of the bird and the climate. One testicle weighs about 5 grams, and its color is varied: white, yellow, greenish, blue and even brown.
When the female sits on the eggs, the partner actively cares for his bird. He carefully carries food to the hen until the chicks hatch. The female lays one egg per day; it turns out that she will lay eggs for only a week. And she will incubate, starting from the first day, for about 25 -30 days.
Newborn chicks are blind, but with sparse down. Any clothes. But the chicks can ruffle their crest, and look like a hedgehog. This is explained by the fact that the feathers are covered in foam and look like needles.
Parents feed their voracious children by bringing them worms and larvae. They just open their beaks wide, and their parents literally push food into their mouths. The babies grow quickly and become stronger, becoming covered with feathers. Only 25 days will pass, and they begin to learn to fly. Having risen on the wing, the chicks remain close to their parents for some time. The most interesting thing is that parents will feed their flying children. The hoopoe is a shy bird and very cautious.
Hoopoe (lat. Upupa epops) is a small brightly colored bird with a long narrow beak and a crest, sometimes opening in the form of a fan. Widely distributed in the southern and central regions of Europe and Asia, as well as almost throughout Africa. Favorite place habitat is an open area with sparse shrubs or trees, such as savanna, meadow or pasture. Also found in cultivated landscapes in orchards and vineyards. Cautious, but not timid - as a rule, it avoids people and flies away when they approach. Spends a lot of time on the ground, hunting insects.
Appearance
The hoopoe cannot be confused with any other bird
A small bird with a length of 25-29 cm and a wingspan of 44-48 cm. Standing out for its striped black and white plumage of wings and tail, a long thin beak and a long crest on the head, it is one of the most easily recognizable birds. The color of the head, neck and chest, depending on the subspecies, varies from pinkish to chestnut (in Russia, the famous Russian ornithologist S. A. Buturlin describes it as “clay-reddish”). The wings are wide, rounded, painted with contrasting black and whitish-yellow stripes. Tail middle length, black with a wide white band in the middle. The ventral part of the body is pinkish-red, with blackish longitudinal stripes on the sides. The crest on the head is orange-red, with black feather tips. Usually the crest is folded, but when landing (rarely at other times) the bird spreads it like a fan. The beak is 4-5 cm long, slightly curved down. The language, unlike many other bird species, is greatly reduced. The legs are lead-gray, quite strong, with short metatarsals and blunt claws. Males and females do not differ from each other in appearance. Young birds are generally colored in less saturated colors and have a shorter beak and crest.
Reproduction
The hoopoe reaches sexual maturity at the age of one year. Monogamous. In Russia, birds arrive at nesting sites quite early - in March-April, when the first thawed patches are just beginning to appear. Immediately upon arrival, the males occupy the breeding territory and behave very actively - they scream loudly, making repeated dull sounds “whoop-whoop-whoop...” and thereby calling the females. In terms of vocalization, the Madagascan subspecies stands somewhat apart - its voice is more reminiscent of a booming purr. During this period, birds scream most often and loudly in the morning and evening, less often during the day.
During courtship, the male and female slowly fly after each other, marking the site for the future nest. Often the same area is used for several years. As a rule, hoopoes breed in separate pairs, however, in the case of other hoopoes in the neighborhood, fights between males on the border of territories, reminiscent of cockfights, are not uncommon. The nest is made in a secluded place - a hollow tree, a rocky crevice, a depression on the slope of a cliff, sometimes in the wall of a stone or clay building. If there is no suitable shelter nearby, eggs can be laid directly on the ground among the dried remains of an animal - for example, the famous German and Russian scientist Peter Pallas described a hoopoe nest in the chest of a human skeleton. The lining is either completely absent or contains only a few blades of grass, feathers and pieces of cow dung. The hollow may also contain rotten wood dust. Unlike the vast majority of birds, hoopoes never remove droppings from the nest, which gradually accumulates around. In addition, during the period of incubation and feeding of chicks, birds produce an oily liquid secreted from the coccygeal gland and having a sharp bad smell. This adaptation helps birds protect themselves from small terrestrial predators, however, for humans it gives a reputation as a very “unclean bird.”
Breeding usually occurs once a year, although in the case of a sedentary lifestyle, repeated (up to three) cycles are noted. The clutch size in temperate climates consists of 5-9 eggs, in the tropics 4-7 eggs. The eggs are oblong, measuring 26 x 18 mm and weighing about 4.4 g. The color varies widely from grayish-white to dark brown, and may have a bluish or greenish tint. One egg is laid per day, incubation begins with the first egg and continues for 25-32 days (incubation period - 15-16 days). The female incubates alone, while the male provides food for her. The chicks that are born are blind and covered with sparse reddish down, which after a few days is replaced by another, pinkish-white and denser. Both parents feed the chicks, alternately bringing them insect larvae and worms. At the age of 20-27 days (in central Russia - late June or early July), the chicks leave the nest and begin to fly, although they remain close to their parents for several more weeks.
Spreading
Hoopoes are heat-loving birds. All species of tree hoopoes live exclusively in Africa and lead sedentary image life. The common hoopoe has the widest range and has moved further north than its fellows. This bird lives throughout Eurasia, Africa (except the Sahara) and Madagascar. Hoopoes from northern parts habitat for the winter, they fly away to spend the winter in its southern parts - to Africa, Transcaucasia, India, Burma, and Southern China. It should be said that hoopoes avoid northern and taiga regions, as well as regions with high humidity, therefore they are not found in the north of the temperate zone, in the extreme west of Europe, in the British Isles, in the Alps. In general, the favorite habitats of these birds are forest-steppes, savannas, sparse forests with edges, semi-deserts with shrub and tree vegetation. Hoopoes do not settle in completely open areas, where there is nowhere to hide a nest, and in continuous forest areas, since they obtain food in open space.
Hoopoe. Photo
Photo of a hoopoe on a branch. Photo: Lip Kee Yap
An indignant hoopoe. Photo: Ferran Pestaña
Hoopoe nutrition
Hoopoes feed on insects that they find on the ground, and also pick them out of all sorts of holes and crevices with their long beak and equally long tongue. A special delicacy for the hoopoe are flies and dung beetles, but they will not refuse crickets, caterpillars and ant eggs.
Video: hoopoe
Duration 1:26
The first impression when meeting a hoopoe is a mixture of beautiful and funny. Despite their relatively small size, hoopoes are quite voracious. They obtain food with their beak. They first pick out the prey from the bark of a tree or from the ground, kill it with sharp blows of the beak, throw it up, catch it and swallow it.
Hoopoe is elegant bird, with its bright plumage and white and black wing pattern, striking the casual observer and even an ornithologist-connoisseur. Based on territorial characteristics, scientists distinguish nine species of these birds:
- Ordinary;
- African;
- Senegalese;
- Madagascar;
- Upupa epops waibeli;
- Upupa epops longirostris;
- Upupa epops major
- Upupa epops saturata;
- Upupa epops ceylonensis.
To the main external characteristics hoopoe birds are:
Externally, both females and males are practically the same from each other. In young birds the color is less saturated. They have a short crest and beak.
Bird habitats and behavior
The hoopoe is a migratory bird. In summer it mainly lives in North Africa and in Europe. In autumn, these birds fly away to spend the winter in tropical zones. Most often they migrate to India and equatorial Africa, but sometimes live all year in Northeast Africa and China.
Bird migration falls at night. Its duration is significantly delayed from mid-July to early November.
Typically, hoopoes are located in open areas and spend time on the ground, choosing habitats such as:
- pastures and meadows;
- heathland;
- savannas;
- forest steppes;
- mountain lands;
- forested areas;
- vineyards;
- olive groves;
- vegetable gardens and orchards.
In order for birds to be able to easily obtain food, there must be vegetation on the ground. Vertical surfaces must also be present. Hoopoes build nests on trees, walls, rocks, and haystacks.
These birds rather weak wings However, they are capable of long, sustained flight, as evidenced by their wandering habit. The flight of the hoopoe is fluttering, slow, but quite maneuverable. Therefore, feathered predators can rarely catch a hoopoe in the air.
On the ground, these “sympathetic creatures” move nimbly and quickly. In the event of an unexpected alarm, when the hoopoe cannot escape, it presses itself to the ground, spreading its tail and wings and raising its beak upward.
During the period of incubation of chicks and their feeding, adult birds and babies produce an oily liquid with a very pungent unpleasant odor. It is secreted from the coccygeal gland, being a kind of protection against small terrestrial predators.
Just like its appearance, the hoopoe's vocals are also special. The bird has a dull, slightly guttural voice and a five-syllable cry “ud-ud-ud” or “up-up-up”, repeated several times in a row. The interval between a series of sounds does not exceed 5 seconds. In cases of fright or surprise, the bird emits a piercing cry “chi-ir”, which resembles the cry of a turtle dove. During mating games and while caring for their offspring, these birds make booming sounds.
Hoopoe reaches sexual maturity at one year of age. These birds are monogamous. They arrive in Russia at their nesting sites when the first thawed patches appear in March-April. Upon arrival, the males behave very actively, occupying the breeding territory. They scream loudly and call females. Hoopoes often use the same territory for several years.
Hoopoes usually breed in separate pairs. Often males living in the neighborhood start fights at the border of the territory, reminiscent of a cockfight.
The bird's nest is made in a secluded place. This could be a hollow tree, a depression on the slope of a cliff, or a rocky crevice. In the absence of suitable shelter, hoopoes may lay eggs on the ground among the dried remains of the animal.
The lining of the nest may contain only a few blades of grass, bits of dung and feathers, or none at all. Unlike most bird species, hoopoes do not remove droppings from the nest, which gradually accumulate.
Breeding offspring most often occurs once a year, but if the birds are sedentary, the cycles can be repeated up to three times. The clutch contains 5-9 oblong eggs weighing about 4.4 g. The color varies from gray-white to dark brown, sometimes it can have a greenish or bluish tint. The bird lays one egg every day, starting incubation from the first and continuing for 25-32 days. While the female is sitting on the nest, the male is foraging for food.
The chicks are born completely blind. They are covered with sparse reddish down, which after a few days changes to pinkish-white, becoming denser. Both parents feed the babies. They alternately bring them worms and insect larvae. At the end of June, the chicks leave the nest at the age of 20-27 days. They begin to fly, but remain with their parents for several more weeks.
Middle life hoopoe - about eight years. This bird is quite ancient. There are mentions of it in the Bible and the Koran.
Nutrition
The main food of the hoopoe is:
These birds feed on the surface of the earth on bare soil or short grass. They often pick at their long nose in manure, rotten wood and garbage heaps. It is for this reason that hoopoes often accompany grazing livestock. In addition, some species additionally feed on fruits and drink flower nectar.
Since ancient times, this outwardly remarkable bird has served as a source of inspiration for humans and has been a character in legends and tales of a number of peoples. She is able to boast exotic, catchy and bright plumage.
Her impressive outfit is highlighted on the wings and lower on the tail with white, yellow and black stripes. And the head is crowned with a feather dress - a fan-shaped long crest, up to 10 cm in size, capable of opening and folding.
This is considered the main distinguishing feature of this winged creature, the reason that in Islam such creatures were often associated with King Solomon, and among some nationalities North Caucasus they were considered sacred, lords of not only the feathered tribe, but also the animal kingdom. The name of this birds – hoopoe.
Such creatures of nature, belonging to the hoopoe family, to the order of hornbills, have a length of about 27 cm. The shade of the head and neck, as well as the color of their chest varies, depending on the subspecies, from chestnut to pink, and can also be clay red .
The hoopoe's head is crowned with a crest, by which it can be easily distinguished from other birds
The abdomen is reddish-pink on the sides with longitudinal blackish stripes. An elongated awl-shaped beak, thin and curved downward at the end, stands out on the head. The span of its rounded, wide wings is approximately 45 cm. The bird also has a medium-length tail and gray-lead legs with blunt claws.
Where does it live? hoopoe? In the hot flowering expanses, where it has taken root almost everywhere. It is also found much further north in many countries. For example, in Russia, such birds take root well in the North Caucasus and even in the lower reaches of rivers such as the Volga and Don, often catching the eye of people in vineyards and orchards.
Such birds live in the southern and middle regions of Eurasia, in the east of this continent, as well as in the Mediterranean, on Japanese islands, in many other places and islands of the planet.
Hoopoe migrant or not? In resolving this question, it is difficult to provide a definite answer. Here everything depends on the latitude where such birds live. And in this regard, they may turn out to be migratory, nomadic, and in favorable regions – sedentary. For example, individuals that have taken root in Central Asia, in harsh times they prefer to migrate to the south of this vast continent.
From the territory of our country in winter they often move to Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan. Moreover, the timing of migration can vary and be extended quite significantly.
Kinds
In the hoopoe family, such birds are the only modern species. But the variety itself is divided into subspecies. TO distinctive features their representatives include: size, shape of wings, feather color and some others.
It is believed that some species of hoopoes have long gone extinct
Among the subspecies, a particularly interesting one can be distinguished: the common hoopoe. This is an amazing and rare bird, comparable in size to. Also, the last representative of the bird kingdom is similar to her in appearance, especially at such moments when the crest of the described bird is folded, and it itself moves along the ground in quick small steps, actively bowing every now and then.
What does a hoopoe look like?– bird described subspecies? By common features about the same as all her relatives. With the exception of the black and white stripes on the wings and lower on the tail, which decorate the appearance of all representatives of the species, the rest of the plumage of the common hoopoe is reddish-buff.
It is possible to meet such a bird on Russian territories In particular, although rarely, it can be observed in, as well as in other large areas of Eurasia and in northwestern Africa.
A very interesting subspecies, although now extinct, is the giant hoopoe. These large birds, completely incapable of flight, according to scientists, were found on the island of St. Helena about five centuries ago. But human activity, in particular the rats and cats he brought to the island territory, contributed to their complete destruction.
In total, biologists describe about ten feats hoopoes. American scientists, having analyzed their DNA, found that the ancestors of these creatures, in all likelihood, were predecessors similar in biological trait with feathered representatives from the order of hornbills.
The latter received this name for their elongated, awl-shaped nose, which, as explained earlier, is also characteristic of hoopoes.
Lifestyle and habitat
Typically, such birds choose open landscapes for settlement, preferring to conduct their life activities on the plains, or, in extreme cases, in small groves or on hilly areas overgrown with grasses and shrubs.
There are especially many representatives of the described species in savannas, forest-steppe zones and steppes - areas with arid, warm climate. Hoopoes can be found in coastal dunes, on green, flat areas, on forest edges, meadows and ravines, in fruit and grape plantings.
Moving on hard ground, this bird behaves quite quickly. And if he senses the approach of danger, he crouches to the ground, spreading his wings, spreading his tail and raising his long beak, thus hiding.
The flight of this bird is very remarkable; it moves through the air, as if diving, now rushing upward, now descending below. Hoopoe voice a little guttural and deaf. And the sounds it makes are similar to “ud-ud-ud”, which turned out to be the reason for the name of the described feathered creature of nature.
And only the Madagascar subspecies is an exception in vocalization, which becomes especially noticeable in mating season. The sounds made by this bird are similar to a booming purr.
Associated with hoopoe folk signs. Some say that such birds are harbingers of trouble and seeing such winged creatures is not a very good omen. The hoopoe is also considered an unclean creature.
This opinion is believed to be associated with some protective measures that these birds take to preserve the life and safety of their chicks. They say that, driving away predators from their offspring, these winged creatures They often shoot droppings at those who encroach on their nests, hitting them directly in the face, eyes or nose.
Some signs associate the appearance of a hoopoe with misfortune
Scientists only recognize the fact that the described birds, like skunks, are endowed by nature with special glands that produce and secrete an unpleasant liquid with an unbearable odor. That is why among knowledgeable people there are few hunters who chase a hoopoe just to catch it and pick it up. After all, such carelessness can end very unpleasantly.
However, nothing prevents you from admiring such a beautiful bird, full of proud beauty, from the outside. Although such birds do not like people, and when they see a person, they tend to fly away immediately. Therefore, it is best to admire the beautiful appearance of these creatures by looking photo of a hoopoe.
It should be noted that despite the legends that give birds a bad reputation, other opinions exist and are very widespread, as already mentioned. For example, among the Chechens and Ingush, even in the pre-Islamic period, this wonderful creation of nature personified the goddess of fertility, spring and childbirth named Tusholi.
Among these peoples, the nest of this bird in the courtyard of the house was considered a wonderful omen, and the murder sacred bird was not at all encouraged. These are signs, hoopoe-related.
One cannot help but remember that these winged creatures are mentioned in the Bible and the equally famous Koran. And they often appear in the works of ancient famous classics. According to legend, King Solomon sent this particular bird with a message to the famous Queen of Sheba. And in response to this he received rich gifts from her.
Nutrition
A long, curved and thin beak, without which description of hoopoe cannot be exhaustive and complete, it turns out to be a very useful tool for these birds in search of food. After all, a bird, getting food for itself, rummages with it on bare soil not covered with greenery or in low-growing grass.
Its prey is usually small invertebrates. For example, a major victim of a feathered predator may be an insect that loves to swarm in the soils of warm sunny plains, tearing up the ground with its forelimbs. Snatching such creatures from the depths of the soil and holding them in its beak, the hoopoe hits the insect with all its strength on the ground, stunning it.
Then it either eats it or takes it to its chicks. The beak is also a tool that helps these birds, like - bird, looks like a hoopoe in this sense, using its long nose to extract insects, pupae and larvae from the insides of old stumps and tree bark. The hoopoe is not afraid of the stings of bees and wasps, so these insects also serve as excellent food for these creatures.
Also among insects, the bird prefers to feast on spiders, annoying flies, grasshoppers, butterflies and other small creatures of this kind. It happens that snakes, lizards, and frogs become victims of this bird.
It is believed that while protecting its chicks, the hoopoe attacks the enemy and pecks out his eyes.
Sometimes, choosing areas to live near settlements, hoopoes begin to feed food waste that are found in landfills. And the bird’s considerable length of beak again helps the bird dig through garbage and manure.
Reproduction and lifespan
In the process of reproducing their own kind, such birds are characterized by constancy. First of all, they are monogamous. In addition, for the construction of nests they prefer to choose invariably the same favorite areas for a certain number of years.
Their hoopoe nests they try to hide them from unwanted eyes in crevices and hollows located not high from the surface of the earth. Sometimes they choose niches in the walls of various stone structures to build a home for their chicks. They do not like unwanted neighbors, including relatives.
Therefore, between married pairs of hoopoes in the fight for territory, real battles, similar to rooster battles, often occur, where the males fight among themselves with great ferocity.
Representatives of this species, settling in Russian open spaces, arrive at nesting sites immediately with the appearance of the first signs of spring. Males, preoccupied with choosing a territory for nesting, behave extremely actively and scream loudly, calling their girlfriends.
Such sounds can be heard mainly in the morning, as well as in the evening. During the day, mating songs of these birds are heard quite rarely.
I wonder what female hoopoe, for lack of anything better, can lay eggs among the bones of dead animals. There has been a recorded case where a nest was made in the ribs of a human skeleton. There are usually up to nine brown or brown eggs in a clutch. gray, about 2 cm in size.
The incubation process lasts approximately a month. At the same time, the male parent carefully supplies his girlfriend with food. It also helps feed the soon-to-be-born offspring.
Hoopoe chicks are growing and developing at a rapid pace. And at the age of three, in some cases, four weeks are already capable of making their first independent flights. For some time, the kids still try to stay close to the parental area. But soon they achieve complete independence. They become fertile one year after birth.
Hoopoes live relatively long for representatives of the avian kingdom, a total of about eight years. According to scientific data, the population of this species of birds on the planet is very numerous, and it is not in danger of extinction.
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