Gazelle : The Palestinian Biological Bulletin (ISSN 0178 – 6288) . Number 139, July 2016, pp. 1-23. | Page 6

6

inside the soil. The hoopoe has broad and rounded wings capable of strong
flight; these are larger in the northern migratory subspecies. The hoopoe has a
characteristic undulating flight, which is like that of a giant butterfly, caused by
the wings half closing at the end of each beat or short sequence of beats
(Wikipedia).
The call is typically a trisyllabic oop-oop-oop, which may give rise to its English
and scientific names, although two and four syllables are also common. An
alternative explanation of the English and scientific names is that they are
derived from the French name for the bird, "Huppée", which means crested. In
the Himalayas, the calls can be confused with that of the Himalayan cuckoo
(Cuculus saturatus), although the cuckoo typically produces four notes. Other
calls include rasping croaks, when alarmed, and hisses. Females produce a
wheezy note during courtship feeding by the male. Both genders, when
disturbed, call a rough charrrrrr, strongly reminiscent of the warning cry of
the Eurasian jay. The food begging call of the nestlings is similar to that of
a common swift: tiiii (Wikipedia).

Prof. Dr. Sc. Norman Ali Bassam Khalaf-von Jaffa infront of the Sharjah Chamber of
Commerce and Industry, Al-Khan Lagoon, Sharjah, UAE. Photo by my friend Moses
Hanfer. 26.02.2015. https://www.flickr.com/photos/50022881@N00/16498139639/

Distribution and Habitat
The hoopoe is widespread in Europe, Asia, and North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa
and Madagascar. Most European and north Asian birds migrate to the tropics in
winter. In contrast, the African populations are sedentary all year. The species
has been a vagrant in Alaska; U. e. saturata was recorded there in 1975 in the
Gazelle : The Palestinian Biological Bulletin – Number 139 – July 2016