Today, I'm super excited to introduce you to one of the most unique and stylish birds I've had the pleasure of photographing: the Common Hoopoe! You'll quickly see why I call it the "bird with the crown" – just wait until you see its amazing head feathers!
These birds are truly special with their beautiful colors and that incredible crest they can raise and lower. They're also quite fascinating in how they find their food, often poking around in the ground with their long beaks.
This bird gets its name from the sound it makes. When it sings, it says “hoo-poo hoo-poo” again and again, which sounds very cute and soft, like it is calling its friends to talk.
Isn't this a lovely introduction? Here's our Hoopoe, giving us a shy peek from the side of a sturdy tree trunk. You can already see the beautiful, rusty-orange and brown colors that help it blend so well with its surroundings. While they spend a lot of time on the ground looking for food, trees often serve as safe perches or places to rest. It's almost like it's playing a little game of hide-and-seek, saying "Hello, world!" in its own quiet way.
The Common Hoopoe is very special because:
✅ It has a long and thin beak, almost like a little sword, which it uses to dig the ground for food.
✅ Its most beautiful part is its crest, or crown of feathers, on its head. When it is happy, excited, or feeling strong, it opens these feathers like a fan.
✅ Its wings and tail have black and white stripes that look like someone painted them carefully with a brush.
When it flies, its wings open wide and look very beautiful in the sky.
The Hoopoe likes to live in:
✅ Open fields ✅ Farms and gardens ✅ Parks with trees ✅ Village lands
It does not make a big strong nest like sparrows or pigeons. Instead, it finds small holes in trees, old walls, or even in mud houses to stay safe and lay its eggs.
They're incredibly focused little hunters, and their earthy colors help them stay camouflaged while they work. They truly are like little nature detectives, using their beaks as their most important tool.
The Hoopoe is always busy looking for food on the ground. It loves to eat:
Small insects hiding in the soil
Worms
Tiny bugs or ants
This really highlights how versatile their beaks are – not just for digging in the ground, but also for getting into all those tiny cracks and crevices where insects might be hiding. It's a quick, precise movement, and you can almost feel its satisfaction at catching its meal!
The Hoopoe is a calm and quiet bird. It does not fight with other birds. Mostly, it walks on the ground alone, looking for food. When it flies, its wings move slowly up and down, looking like a small butterfly in the sky.
✨ In old stories and Islamic history, Hoopoe was known as the wise bird of Hazrat Suleiman A.S (King Solomon). It was his messenger bird who brought news from far lands.
✨ Its nest can sometimes smell a little bad because it does not clean like other birds, but it stays strong and protects its babies.
✨ Its crown opens and closes just like an umbrella or a fan, making it look royal and proud.
💛 It walks cutely with its head moving up and down
💛 Its crown looks like it is ready for a party
💛 Its soft “hoo-poo hoo-poo” sound is peaceful and lovely to hear in the morning
I hope you've enjoyed this detailed journey into the world of the magnificent Common Hoopoe through my photographs! Their unique appearance, clever hunting techniques, and those show-stopping crests make them an absolute joy to observe and photograph. If you've ever been lucky enough to spot a Hoopoe in your adventures, I'd absolutely love to hear about your experience and where you saw it in the comments below!
