Every year, the Russian Bird Conservation Union selects the bird of the year. Candidate species must meet several conditions. First, they must be widely distributed so that as many people as possible can participate in its study and conservation. Secondly, such a bird should be easy to recognize and distinguish from other species by a person without special training. Finally, the species is selected so that everyone can provide specific assistance to it, for example, take part in population surveys, help solve a housing problem, or protect habitats.
The bird of 2015 in Russia was the redstart, and in 2016 the hoopoe will play this role. It must be admitted that the hoopoe fits the criteria perfectly. When we see a hoopoe, we can easily recognize it. The most striking external feature of a hoopoe is a crest on its head made of red feathers with black tips. Usually it is folded, but sometimes the bird opens it in the form of a fan. The main color of the hoopoe's plumage is reddish, from pale ocher to bright red depending on the bird's habitat (usually brighter in the south). The color is more intense on the chest of the bird, and the abdomen is rather whitish. On the back and wings of the hoopoe there is a contrasting pattern of black and white stripes. Indeed, such a bird can hardly be confused with someone else. Gerald Durrell in his book “Garden of the Gods” talks about a wounded bird he took into his house: “I named my hoopoe Hiawatha, and its appearance in our midst was met with unanimous approval, because my relatives liked hoopoes, and besides, it was the only exotic a species that they could all identify from twenty paces away.”
Hoopoe is widespread. In Russia, the northern border of its range reaches the southern part of the Leningrad region, the Novgorod, Yaroslavl, Nizhny Novgorod regions, Tatarstan, Bashkiria, goes around the Ural Mountains in the south of the Orenburg region, then passes through the south of Siberia, approximately along the 56th parallel to the Amur region, Khabarovsk and Primorsky region. Outside of Russia, the hoopoe is found throughout Eastern Europe from Poland to Greece, Italy, France, Spain and Portugal. In Germany, hoopoes are found only in certain areas; they are occasionally found in southern Sweden, Denmark, Estonia, Latvia, the Netherlands and England. Hoopoe is also widespread in Asia from Turkey to China, and in Africa (except for the desert zone). In 1975, hoopoes were first spotted in Alaska, in the Yukon River delta. Bram reports that once a hoopoe was caught even in Spitsbergen.
In the north of its range, the hoopoe migrant, he flies to Africa or India for the winter. In India, Indochina, Arabia and Africa, the hoopoe is a sedentary bird. In Europe, resident hoopoes are known only in southern Spain and Portugal. During the migration, hoopoes can rise to great heights, overcoming the Himalayan mountains. Participants in one of the expeditions that conquered Everest noticed hoopoes at an altitude of 6400 meters.
Hoopoes are found much more often in the south; in the north they are rare. In Russia, the hoopoe was included in several regional Red Books, for example, Lipetsk, Moscow, Tver, Kirov, Novosibirsk and Tomsk regions, as well as Bashkortostan, Tatarstan, Udmurtia and the Mari El Republic. Biologists believe that hoopoes began to settle in the north relatively late, when people began to reduce the northern forests to pastures and fields. Hoopoes love open spaces, interspersed with forests and groves, do not avoid gardens and parks, and can nest in human buildings, although the best place for a hoopoe nest is a hollow tree.
The hoopoe is considered the only species of the hoopoe family (Upupidae). Sometimes the subspecies of hoopoe, which lives in Africa south of the equator, is considered a separate species (Upupa africana). Another candidate for the status of a separate species is the hoopoe from Madagascar (Upupa marginata). Once upon a time special kind The hoopoe lived on the island of St. Helena, but ornithologists discovered it only after its disappearance from partially fossilized bone remains. In 1963, British zoologist Philip Ashmole discovered a humerus that was clearly different from the bones of ordinary hoopoes. And in 1975, the famous avian paleontologist Storrs Olson obtained two funnel bones and the left femur of this bird. This is all that scientists got from this species. The hoopoe is believed to have disappeared shortly after the discovery of St. Helena in 1502, when rats and cats entered the area. This species is called the St. Helena hoopoe or the giant hoopoe (Upupa antaios).
Many peoples noted the characteristic cry of the hoopoe - a dull “oop-oop-oop” or “hoop-hoop-hoop”. The cry of the bird gives its Latin name - upupa, and the ancient Greek - ἔποψ, their combination became the official name of the hoopoe in biological nomenclature - Upupa epops. The onomatopoeic origin of the names of hoopoe in many other languages: English hoopoe, Arabic هُدْهُد, Armenian հոպոպ, Catalan puput, Chechen hӏuttut, Czech dudek, Serbian and Croatian pupavac / pupavac, Georgian ოფ ოფი , Irish húpú, Kurdish (sorani) pepû, Latvian pupuķis, Lithuanian kukutis, Macedonian pupunets, Portuguese poupa, Romanian pupăză, Upper Lusatian hupak. In some cases, the onomatopoeic origin is somewhat obscured by changes that have occurred over the long history of the word, for example, the Spanish name abubilla hoopoe comes from the folk Latin diminutive *upupella of the letters “hoopoe,” which in turn is derived from the Latin upupa.
As often happens, people sought to hear something meaningful in the bird’s cry. Russians most often perceived the “hoop-hoop-hoop” of the hoopoe as the phrase “It’s bad here!” And they considered it an evil omen (in some areas there was even the name hoopoe khudututka). However, the Chernigov peasants tried to listen more carefully. If it seemed to them that the hoopoe was shouting “It’s bad here!”, the harvest would be bad, but if they heard the cry “I’ll be here!”, then they expected a rich harvest. In the south of Russia and Ukraine, it was believed that the cry of a hoopoe foreshadows rain, hence another name for it in Ukrainian dialects - slotnyak, from the word slot “bad weather”. In some regions of Ukraine, the hoopoe was called sinokos, since it was believed that it screams on the eve of haymaking time.
In 1959, the outstanding Greek director Karolos Kuhn once again staged Aristophanes' "The Birds". The hoopoe in this comedy is one of the main characters, the king of birds. The author of the text in modern Greek, the poet Vasilis Rotas, also decided to convey the cry of a hoopoe in verse. From Rotas, Hoopoe asks: “Πού, πού, πού, πού, πού, πού ναι αυτός που μας εκάλεσε; Πού, πού, πού, πού, σε ποιο μέρος βόσκει;..." - "Where, where, where, where, where is the one who called us? Where, where, where, where does he graze?
The second sign of the hoopoe, widely reflected in its names and associated folklore, is the crest. According to a legend that existed in Volyn, the hoopoe was once the king of birds, but wanted to become a bird god. God punished the hoopoe for this, giving it a forelock on its head and a disgusting smell (we will return to this feature of the hoopoe later). In the Caucasus, other legends about the appearance of the crest were told. They said that one day the father-in-law found his daughter-in-law combing her hair. Out of shame at being seen with bare hair, the woman asked to be turned into a bird, and the comb remained stuck in her hair. This plot is known in the folklore of Azerbaijanis, Armenians and Rutulians.
Probably, the similarity of the crest with a uniform headdress caused the appearance of one of the Turkish names for the hoopoe - çavuş kuşu “chavuş bird”. Historically, Çavuş was a fairly high command rank in the Sultan's guard, and in the modern Turkish army it is a sergeant rank. And to the Croats, the crest of the hoopoe resembled a crown, which is how the name kruničar arose. The Persians call the hoopoe šânebesar “crest on the head”, and the Finns call it harjalintu “bird with a crest”.
Thanks to its crest, the hoopoe looked like a rooster with its crest. The modern Greek name for hoopoe τσαλαπετεινός appeared as a result of adding the Turkish çali “bush” and πετεινός “rooster”, so hoopoe is “bush rooster”. Croats sometimes called the hoopoe božij kokotić "God's cock".
The Slavs often associated the hoopoe with representatives of other nations. In many Slavic languages, the hoopoe is called a foreign (Gypsy, Jewish, Moscow) rooster or a foreign cuckoo: Bulgarian Tsigansko petle, Belarusian Zhydowska zazulya, Ukrainian Zhidivska (Jewish) Zozulya, Ukrainian Moskovska Zozulya, Polish żydowska zozula. In the Stavropol Territory the name Dutch cockerel was found. The Bulgarians also use the name Cherkez.
In Poland they said that the Jews brought the hoopoe with them from other countries and that this bird screams in Hebrew. In the Lviv region it was believed that the hoopoe pronounces the name of the Jews: “Yud-yud!”, and near Brest in the cry of the hoopoe they heard “Vus-vus-vus?” - “What-what-what?” in Yiddish.
The cuckoo and hoopoe are considered closely related species in many parts of the Slavic world. The Terek Cossacks even called both birds the word cuckoo. In Poland it was often believed that the hoopoe was a male cuckoo. Poles, Ukrainians, Czechs and Croats told tales about a married couple - a hoopoe and a cuckoo. The cuckoo asks her husband to buy her shoes or dresses (“Whoa! Whoa!”), but he does nothing, but only promises that he will fulfill everything soon (“I’ll get it!”).
Finally, another noticeable sign of a hoopoe is its smell. In hoopoe chicks and the female, during the period of incubation of eggs, the coccygeal gland produces a special black-brown liquid with a very unpleasant odor. In a moment of danger, the bird can release a stream of this liquid, also mixed with droppings, at the enemy. As a rule, this measure is enough to scare away a cat or weasel trying to destroy the nest.
The smell of hoopoe was well known to people, and this gave rise to a number of dialect names: Ukrainian smerdyukha, vonyak, gidko, Serbian smrdul, smrdel. A similar word became the main name in the Slovenian language (smrdokavra). A number of folk signs have been associated with the smell of hoopoe. So in the south of Russia they believed that if you hold a hoopoe in your hands, you won’t be able to get your hands on the horse.
Perhaps because of its characteristic smell, the hoopoe was among the birds that devout Jews were forbidden to eat (Deuteronomy 14:18, Leviticus 11:19). Although the Monk Ephraim the Syrian believed that the biblical text should not be understood literally: “The hoopoe is an image of people who diligently study pagan teachings, diligently spend their nights reading malicious allegories and vile Hellenic stories, and do not think about the peace that the teachings of the Crucified One give.”
Another reason that the hoopoe was declared non-kosher may have been the bird's craving for manure. Hoopoes feed on insects, and piles of dung have always attracted a variety of flies and beetles, from where they can be easily picked up by the hoopoe's curved, tweezer-like beak. Bram describes the habits of African hoopoes as follows: “Not paying any attention to the person who is just about to give some food to dung beetles and flies and bring into the light of day pieces of tapeworms, from which, at least in Ethiopia, everyone suffers, the bird walks around well. familiar latrines."
In Transcarpathia there was a legend that explained the smell of the hoopoe as a punishment for betraying the hiding Christ to his pursuers: “It’s my fault.” Wine, if they caught Christ, and the wine shouted: “Here-here-here.” And Christ said: “You will stink like a dog.”
A different story was told in Algeria. In it, King Solomon punished the hoopoe for his offense. It’s as if Solomon’s beloved once asked him to build her a house out of eggs. The king ordered all the birds and fish to bring eggs. Only Sparrow and Hoopoe did not do this. Solomon ordered the disobedient ones to be brought to him. The sparrow, appearing before the king, said that he did not dare bring such a small egg to such a great king. Hoopoe explained his delay by saying that he was thinking about important questions: “Which is longer - night or day?”, “Who is there more - living or dead? men or women? The hoopoe also reported on the results of his thoughts. The day is longer than the night, as the light of the moon prolongs it. There are more living people because they talk about the recently deceased and the great as if they were still alive. And there are more women than men, because a fool who demands to build a house of eggs is not a man.
The Berbers in southern Morocco told a very strange story about the smell of hoopoe. The hoopoe, they believed, was a loving son. When his mother died, he could not bury her in the ground, but began to carry her on his head. As a result, the mother turned into his crest, and the hoopoe acquired an unpleasant odor.
Features and habitat of the hoopoe
Hoopoe(from Latin Upupa epops) is a bird, the only one modern representative from the hoopoe family of the order Coraciiformes. This is a medium-sized bird, with a body length of 25-28 cm and a weight of up to 75 g; the wingspan reaches 50 cm.
The hoopoe has a medium-length tail, a small head with a long (about 5 cm), slightly curved beak and a movable drop-down crest on top of the top of the head. The color of the plumage is variegated and varies, depending on the species, from pinkish to light brown.
The wings and tail have alternating black and white stripes. From the description of the hoopoe bird it is clear that this small miracle is very attractive and interesting. Because of its colorful, distinctive crest, the hoopoe has become a very popular and famous representative of birds.
At the 2016 annual meeting of the Bird Conservation Union Russian Federation chose hoopoe bird of the year. Scientists, on a territorial basis, distinguish nine species of hoopoe bird:
1. Common hoopoe(from Lat. Upupa epops epops) - lives, including in the southern regions of the Russian Federation;
2. Hoopoe of Senegal(from Latin Upupa epops senegalensis);
3. African Hoopoe(from Latin Upupa epops africana);
4. Madagascar Hoopoe(from Latin Upupa epops marginata);
5. Upupa epops major;
6. Upupa epops waibeli;
7. Upupa epops saturata;
8. Upupa epops ceylonensis;
9. Upupa epops longirostris.
These birds are originally from Africa, but in the process of evolution they spread to Asia and southern Europe. In our country, hoopoes live in the Leningrad, Nizhny Novgorod, Yaroslavl and Novgorod regions.
They have also taken root well in Tatarstan and Bashkiria, in the south of Eastern and Western Siberia. Preference is given to forest-steppe and steppe zones, forest edges, and small groves. They do not like damp climates.
For the winter they migrate south to warm climates. Related birds to the hoopoe are horned crows and hornbills. Although these representatives of the fauna are much larger, their external the similarity with hoopoes can be seen in the photo these birds.
The main similarity is the presence on their heads of certain brightly colored protrusions, like the crest of a hoopoe. Birds related to the hoopoe also live mainly on the African continent.
Character and lifestyle of the hoopoe
Hoopoes are active during the daytime and spend this time searching for food to feed themselves and their offspring. They are monogamous birds and live in male-female pairs all their lives, gathering in small flocks only for migrating to wintering grounds.
In search of food, it often descends to the ground and moves along it quite quickly. Seeing danger in the form of predators on the ground, it releases an oily liquid with a very unpleasant odor along with droppings, thereby scaring away hunters.
If the bird understands that it will not be possible to escape by flight, then the hoopoe hides on the ground, clinging to it with its whole body with open wings, thereby perfectly camouflaging itself with the environment.
At all Hoopoes are very shy birds and often flee even from the slightest rustle made by the wind. These birds do not fly fast, but their flight is fluttering and quite maneuverable, which allows them to hide from birds of prey that cannot instantly change the direction of their flight.
Hoopoe nutrition
The hoopoe's diet consists of various kinds of insects, which it finds on the ground, in trees and catches in flight. They eat larvae, spiders, beetles, grasshoppers, worms, caterpillars and even snails.
The method of their extraction is very simple and occurs using long beak, with which the hoopoe picks out prey from the ground or tree bark. Having taken the insect out of its shelter, the bird kills it with sharp blows of its beak, throws it into the air and swallows it with its mouth open.
Some species can also drink flower nectar and eat fruit. In general, despite their small size, hoopoes are very voracious birds.
Reproduction and lifespan of the hoopoe
As already written above, hoopoes are monogamous birds and choose their other half once in a lifetime. They reach sexual maturity by the age of one year, when the first choice of a partner occurs.
Males during this period are very noisy and attract females with their cries. For nesting, hoopoes choose hollows in trees, crevices in mountainous areas, and sometimes build a nest right on the ground or in the roots of trees.
Self hoopoe's nest small, often consisting of several branches and a small number of leaves. Fertilization occurs in most species once a year, in some sedentary species it occurs up to three times a year.
The female lays 4-9 eggs depending on the nesting climate. Every day one egg is laid and for the next 15-17 days incubation occurs on each egg.
With such brooding, the last chicks appear on the 25-30th day. Males do not hatch eggs; during this period they only obtain food for the female. After the chicks hatch, they live for a month with their parents, who feed them and teach them to live independently.
By this time, the chicks begin to fly independently and obtain food for themselves, after which they leave their parents and begin an independent life.
The average lifespan of a hoopoe is about eight years. This representative of the order Coraciiformes is quite ancient bird, mention of it is found in ancient scriptures, including the Bible and the Koran.
Scientists archaeologists have found rock hoopoe bird pictures in the ancient caves of Persia. Nowadays, few people think about the protection of this wonderful bird at the general human and state level, and at the same time, their numbers are greatly reduced.
How can we help the hoopoe bird?? In some countries, to increase the population of these birds, low-toxic fertilizers are sprayed onto fields, which do not harm the living creatures that live and feed on them.
They also leave a certain amount of land fallow so that hoopoes can exist on it. I think in our state it is quite possible to implement these measures in those regions where the wonderful hoopoe bird nests.
Our ancestors believed that birds, among all representatives of the animal world, symbolize spirituality and have a strong connection with heaven and earth. In ancient times, they were harbingers of bad or good events. Let's find out what signs about birds exist and what they promise us.
Predatory
As they say folk superstitions, seeing an Eagle, Kite or Hawk falling in the garden means a great threat to the lives of pets or children.
If predatory bird entered your yard and screamed - expect trouble and big troubles.
A kite sitting on a church cross, according to some beliefs, portends great success, according to others - great misfortune.
Eagles or kites are digging the ground in your area - beware of bad and envious people.
Wild
Folk signs have about birds different interpretation, depending on their type and behavior:
- If a wild bird hovers over your head, betrayal or betrayal on the part of a loved one awaits you.
- When an Eagle flies over a person’s head, this sign indicates that he will soon achieve his goal.
- A flock of wild birds flying towards you indicates that you will be blessed with success and good luck.
- Hearing the Nightingale sing is a thing that at that moment they thought would be successful.
- An Owl or an Owl screams near your house - expect an addition to the family. This can be not only the birth of a child, but also the offspring of animals.
- Wagtail. Many people admire the beauty of this little bird. Seeing it on a tree, in the yard, on the porch or on the roof is a sign that foretells happy events for you. If you happen to find a dead wagtail, be careful in your actions and words. They can bring you trouble.
- If you saw a Jay (Mockingbird) fluttering above your head, it means that a happy period in your life will soon begin. Many people associate it with the blue bird of happiness. If she constantly flutters near your house or on your property, do not move away and follow her. She will show you the right path to happiness.
- A Hoopoe often flies into your garden - expect great luck in both personal and financial affairs. Builds a nest in the garden - be careful in your expenses. Don't even try to drive him away, otherwise financial difficulties will become even larger.
Homemade
Among the people there are different signs associated with poultry.
- a rooster crows at the owners’ doorstep or in front of it - there will be guests soon;
- brood hens behave restlessly and cannot fall asleep in the evening - troubles, empty chores and quarrels with neighbors await you;
- a goose that suddenly disappears from the yard foreshadows big troubles for the owner;
- bad events are indicated by a goose that laid only two eggs.
If suddenly a parrot flew into the apartment through a window or front door- a big one awaits you financial profit. For such a sign to come true, do not drive her away, but rather feed her and shelter her.
If a parrot dies in a cage, it is not good. This is a sign that there will soon be trouble in your family.
There is another old belief among the people - if there is at least one black individual in a flock of poultry, this means that such a house is under reliable protection from evil spirits.
Urban
Folk superstitions and signs about urban birds have different meanings.
Swift
Almost everything folk beliefs Birds flying into a house or apartment through a window indicate that the person is expecting news. The situation with swifts is a little different.
If a swift flew into a house or apartment and immediately flew out, good news awaits you. Seeing a swift hitting the glass and rushing around the apartment is bad news. If a swift breaks, this is a kind of warning of trouble.
Magpie
If a magpie lands on the windowsill and does not fly away for a long time, it means that the one who is sick in the family will soon get better.
A sign indicates a speedy recovery when a magpie actively jumps on the roof of a house, on a windowsill or on a balcony.
Crow
Most often, folk signs about crows have a negative meaning:
- if a crow arrives, hovers above you and croaks, expect big trouble;
- crows scream and circle over the church - someone will soon die in your area;
- to see on the way home sitting on a stone - an unpleasant guest will appear soon;
- sits against the sun on the roof of your house and shouts - trouble awaits you at work;
- a flock of crows flying out of the forest - there will be a lean year;
- noticed how one crow feeds another - rejoice, this phenomenon promises you great luck and success;
- a mass gathering and the cry of crows near the house - to a quarrel with a friend;
- see a dead crow - betrayal from loved ones awaits you.
Pigeon
In most cases, it is a harbinger of good events.
If a pigeon or dove flew over you and touched you with its wing, you can safely begin your planned business, it will be successful.
If a pigeon flew into the house through the ventilation, long-awaited guests will soon arrive or you will receive news from close relatives.
If he makes a nest under the roof or on the balcony, great happiness and wealth await such a person.
A dove knocks on the window - expect pleasant and cheerful guests.
Martin
There are several folk superstitions about swallows:
- Dead in an apartment or in a house - only sorrows and tears await the owner.
- If you died on the street and met on your way - good luck for the whole year.
- A flying flock of swallows is always a harbinger of good events. Flew over your head - expect great luck in financial matters. If a flock flies over the newlyweds’ home, it means they will live in love and harmony all their lives.
- If a swallow lands on your head, your wish will certainly come true.
- A bird crashes into a car by accident - a person faces great financial losses. After the impact, the windshield cracked - there will be a big crack in your personal and financial affairs (discord, misunderstandings, waste, etc.).
- To knock down a swallow's nest or step on it in or near your own premises means bringing disaster to your home. People believed that after such an act a fire would occur.
- Catching and deliberately killing a swallow is a sign of depriving oneself of joy. To inadvertently cause harm is to jeopardize your own well-being.
- If you see her building a nest in your yard, rejoice and raise your hands to her - soon you will become a happy person. To keep it in your yard, try to disturb it as little as possible.
- A dead or wounded swallow fell to the ground right at your feet - one of your relatives will become very ill.
Signs about the weather
Folk signs based on birds help determine the weather. There are many such beliefs. The most popular of them:
- If in the spring a magpie has built a nest high in a tree, the weather will be clear and calm for a month. If it is low, spring frosts are coming.
- Pigeons bathing in a puddle means the day will be warm and sunny.
- If by spring swallows fly high in the sky, signs say the weather will be good; low above the ground, it will most likely rain.
- A woodpecker knocks on a trunk in winter - it will snow soon.
- If sparrows hide their heads under their wings at the end of autumn, the first frosts will soon begin. If they swim in puddles, wait for warm weather.
- A nightingale sings for several evenings in a row - expect strong and gusty winds in the coming days.
- In winter, when there is a thaw, they swim in the water - expect slight and short-term warming.
- Many crows have gathered near the pond - expect inclement weather (storm, rain, hurricane).
- A flock of kites rushes in the sky and screams - expect inclement weather.
The meaning of negative signs
The worst thing is death. People have different superstitions about birds in this regard.
It doesn’t matter if she died in a chimney, drainpipe or ventilation - the omen does not bode well, only trouble. Getting hit by accident on the road is a warning sign that you should reconsider your life and change something in it.
If she died on your doorstep, be careful in communicating with strangers, perhaps there are ill-wishers among them. Bury it in the garden to neutralize negative signs about birds.
She suffered, but did not die, carefully pick her up with your hands, bring her home and try to save her. Then there will always be comfort, prosperity and happiness in your home.
Signs associated with the cemetery
Whether a bird is sitting on a grave or on its cross, you need to look where its tail is directed - in that direction trouble will happen.
Folk signs about birds say that if a deceased person flies and sits on the fence, he gives you a sign that everything is fine with him.
Ekaterina Sergeevna Shvedova - Two signs about birds that are harbingers of misfortune
A bird flew into the window - a good or bad omen?
Other signs
Among all the existing superstitions, folk signs about birds that love to shit on us are the most popular.
A bird swearing at people means great luck and money. A sign has the same meaning if you see her droppings on your car.
As popular superstitions say, if a bird flies in and marks your work or service uniform, expect a promotion.
If she behaves anxiously and knocks on your window, expect news and most likely bad news. Such a messenger should not be driven away. Also, you shouldn’t let him in and keep him in the house, otherwise trouble will inevitably happen.
Conclusion
As you can see, folk beliefs associated with birds bring people different news and changes in life. Whether you believe in them or not is up to you.
A bright, small hoopoe (you will see a photo of the bird later) with a beautiful crest on its head and a long curved beak - beautiful and very interesting birds. “I and the World” will tell you where others live, what they eat Interesting Facts about these cute birds.
Description of the bird: body up to 29 cm long and weighing up to 70 grams, wingspan - 45-48 cm, height of the black-orange crest on the head 5-10 cm, thin, curved beak grows about 5 cm. All plumage is orange, yellow, white and black shades.
What do young birds look like? Not overly colorful like adults, and the tufted bill is naturally shorter. The male and female hoopoe are no different from each other; they are the same in size and color.
The voice of birds is interesting: dull, as if coming deep from the throat, consisting of repeating sounds. “Oop-oop-oop” or “ud-ud-ood” – hence the name. When he gets scared, he screams shrilly: “chii-ir.” But the song of the hoopoe from Madagascar is similar to the sounds made by small kittens.
Naturally, it feeds on insects, but since the hoopoe often lives near water, it includes small mollusks, frogs, lizards and even small snakes in its diet. Because of its small tongue, it can be difficult to swallow food right away, so the hoopoe interestingly throws food up, catches it with its beak and eats it. It eats large beetles, breaking them into pieces on the ground.
In nature, these birds live in the central and southern regions of the continents. Depending on where the birds live, they are divided into wintering or migratory. Most migrate to Africa; a few individuals remain to winter in the Mediterranean and in the north.
The habitat is quite diverse: plains with thickets of short grass, hilly areas, mountains 2000 m high. They prefer steppes, forest-steppes and savannas. They also live close to humans - in pastures, in orchards and planting grapes.
Nests are built in tree hollows, in burrows in river cliffs, and in stone crevices. Birds mate for life and even build nests for several years. The chicks are fed by both parents for about a month, and then the babies are taught to fly and look for food.
Interestingly, birds defend themselves: seeing danger, they splash out a stream of excrement with a terrible smell that can be felt around for several meters. By the way, chicks also know how to defend themselves.
Hoopoes run very fast. When something bothers a bird, it presses to the ground, spreads its wings and tail, raising its beak proudly. The photograph shows a hoopoe sensing danger.
IN fiction The image of this bright bird is often used. Among the Chechens, the hoopoe was sacred until they converted to Islam. If he has built a nest in the yard, this is considered a good omen. In the Old Testament it is mentioned as a bird that cannot be killed, much less eaten. In Israel it is a national symbol, and in the African Gambia the hoopoe is depicted on banknotes.
In the article we showed pictures of bright and beautiful birds, you found out whether they are migratory or not, where they are common and how they behave in nature. Hoopoes are rare in zoos; it is difficult for them to live in captivity.
Watch a video about how a hoopoe sings and screams (for children).
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Many superstitions are associated with birds. There are different, positive and negative, folk signs about birds. People meet them every day under any circumstances. They can prompt or warn about unexpected changes in life, report good or bad news or events.
Folk signs about birds
Folk signs about birds can help you cope with the unknown and avoid dangerous life situations. Since ancient times, people have observed various natural phenomena and their impact on life. This connection is reflected in signs. We should not neglect the knowledge that has been formed and passed on from generation to generation for hundreds of years.
Folk signs include:
- natural phenomena;
- weather;
- animal world.
People have created a variety of superstitions about birds. Long-term observation of life and the characteristics of their behavior allowed people to compare it with climate change and changes in their own lives.
Any bird, whether wild or domestic, can tell a lot of stories. You just need to be careful and listen to what your intuition tells you.
Signs about wild birds
If you rely on the wisdom of folk wisdom, then when a bird of prey circles over a person for a long time, this can be a warning of betrayal.
- If you notice an eagle above your head, then this is a good sign and predicts that your desired goals will soon be achieved.
- When a flock of birds flies towards a person, this is a sign of success.
- If you heard the nightingale singing, then expect success in an important matter.
- If you hear an owl or an owl near your home, expect more to come soon.
- Seeing a wagtail nearby is a sign of positive changes in life.
- If you see a sick or dead wagtail, you should beware of failure.
- The appearance of a jay may herald the beginning of a happy stage in life. If you follow the bird, you may come across signs of fate that open the way to happiness.
- If a hoopoe often flies to your home or has even settled there and built a nest for itself, then you should be more careful about your own finances.
Signs about poultry
When people talk about poultry, chicken and rooster immediately come to mind. The crowing of a rooster on the threshold of a house foreshadows the arrival of imminent guests. If brood hens behave anxiously at night and do not fall asleep, then soon disagreements and disputes with neighbors are possible.
If you keep geese at home, they can promptly indicate possible troubles in the near future. It is considered a bad sign if a goose lays 2 eggs or when a goose disappears from the yard for any reason.
Signs about urban birds
The swallow, magpie, crow, and dove live in cities, which has led to the emergence of many superstitions associated with them.
- When a swallow has built a nest near your window, this bodes only good things and good luck will favor your home. But if the bird suddenly leaves the nest, then this is bad, luck has turned away from you for some reason.
- If any bird easily flies into your window and soon flies out, then positive news awaits you. If the bird was restlessly darting around the entire room, you can prepare for equally disturbing news.
- When a magpie flies near a sick person, you can expect a quick and successful recovery. Such a positive outcome can be evidenced by the rather energetic jumping of the magpie around the neighborhood of the house.
- Crows are associated with not the most good omens, but still these are not harbingers of bad things, but only signs from fate. When a crow flies overhead for a long time and croaks quite loudly, you should expect trouble, and if a bird croaks on the roof of a church, then someone will die soon.
- When a dove unexpectedly swoops down on you, this is a reason for joy; it tells you that any business you have in mind will definitely succeed.
Signs about the weather
There are a huge number of signs about the weather associated with birds:
- if a magpie has built a nest at a high altitude, then the next month promises sunny and little windy weather, but if the nest is located quite low, bad weather should be expected;
- when a crow screams loudly and does not stop moving from place to place, rain is expected;
- a high flight of a swallow means clear weather, and a low flight means bad weather;
- The return of a swallow from warm climes in early spring means an imminent thunderstorm; there should be weather favorable for growing crops.
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