Gazelle : The Palestinian Biological Bulletin (ISSN 0178 – 6288) . Number 139, July 2016, pp. 1-23. | Page 2

2

On Thursday 26th February 2015 I visited the Sharjah Chamber of Commerce and
Industry, Al-Khan Lagoon, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates during my tour guiding of the
Diplomat Tour 2015.
At around 15.00 hours, I observed a Hoopoe )Upupa epops Linnaeus, 1758) in the
Gardens of the Sharjah Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The Hoopoe was inserting
his long bill into the grassy ground searching for food.

The Hoopoe )Upupa epops Linnaeus, 1758) in the Gardens of the Sharjah Chamber of
Commerce and Industry, Al-Khan Lagoon, Sharjah, UAE. Photo by Prof. Dr. Sc. Norman
Ali Bassam Khalaf-von Jaffa. 26.02.2015.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/50022881@N00/16682307341/
The Hoopoe (Upupa epops) is a colourful bird found across Afro-Eurasia, notable
for its distinctive "crown" of feathers. It is the only extant species in the family
Upupidae. One insular species, the Saint Helena hoopoe, is extinct, and the
Madagascar subspecies of the hoopoe is sometimes elevated to a full species.
Like the Latin name upupa, the English name is an onomatopoeic form which
imitates the cry of the bird. The hoopoe is the national bird of Israel (Wikipedia).

Taxonomy and Systematics
The hoopoe was classified in the clade Coraciiformes, which also includes
kingfishers, bee-eaters, and rollers. A close relationship between the hoopoe and
Gazelle : The Palestinian Biological Bulletin – Number 139 – July 2016