Common Hoopoe
Upupa epops
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Cordats)
- ClassAves (Aus)
- OrderBucerotiformes (Hornbills and Hoopoes)
- FamilyUpupidae (Hoopoes)
- GenusUpupa (Hoopoes)
- SpeciesUpupa epops (Common Hoopoe)
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". The Eurasian hoopoe is native to Europe, Asia and Africa. It is migratory in the northern part of its range. Some ornithologists consider the Madagascar hoopoe (U. marginata) as a subspecies. Wikipedia →
Closest Relatives at Selous Game Reserve
Crowned Hornbill
Lophoceros alboterminatus
African Grey Hornbill
Lophoceros nasutus
Green Wood Hoopoe
Phoeniculus purpureus
Southern Ground-Hornbill
Bucorvus leadbeateri
Trumpeter Hornbill
Bycanistes bucinator
Common Scimitarbill
Rhinopomastus cyanomelas
Silvery-cheeked Hornbill
Bycanistes brevis
Von der Decken's Hornbill
Tockus deckeni
📅 Monthly Probability
Fewer than 5 records of Common Hoopoe at Selous Game Reserve — not enough to chart months honestly.
☀️ When They're Spotted
Most active during daytime hours (6am–6pm) · across all parks (global)
Global Distribution
Where this species is recorded worldwide. Restricted to human observations from 2019 onwards — the same kind of record and the same period the probabilities on this page are built from, so collar-tracking studies, camera-trap arrays and museum specimens are excluded. Around Santa Rosa that removes 5,924 GPS fixes from a handful of tagged jaguars.
where this species is recorded (GBIF density — it tracks where observers go, not how likely a sighting is) · parks where it occurs — tap a pin for the sighting probability there