Maltiisk orden

Number by catalogue:  Michel: 764   Yvert: 745   Scott: 692   Gibbons: 798  

Perforation type: 14x14

Subject:

13 centov. The Hoopoe (Upupa epops)*. Bird on tipical maltese view

Additional:

*The Hoopoe(Upupa epops) is a colourful bird that is found across Afro-Eurasia, notable for its distinctive 'crown' of feathers.

The Hoopoe is classified in the Coraciiformes clade, a group that also includes kingfishers, bee-eaters, rollers, and wood-hoopoes (forming a clade with this one according to Hackett et al (2008)). In the Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy, the Hoopoe is separated from the Coraciiformes as a separate order, the Upupiformes. It is the only extant member of its family, although what are now considered subspecies, such as the resident African form U. e. africana, were formerly sometimes given specific status. The Giant Hoopoe, U. antaios, lived on the island of St Helena but became extinct in the sixteenth century.

The Hoopoe is widespread in Europe, Asia, and North Africa, as well as Sub-Saharan Africa and Madagascar. It migrates from all but the southernmost part of its range to the tropics in winter.

The Hoopoe prefers open cultivated ground with short grass or bare patches, and spends much time on the ground hunting insects and worms. It is 25–29 cm long, with a 44–48 cm wingspan and a long, thin beak weighing 46-70 grams. This black, white and pink bird is quite unmistakable, especially in its erratic flight, which is like that of a giant butterfly. The song is a trisyllabic "oop-oop-oop", which gives rise to its English and scientific names.

The nest is in a hole in a tree or wall. Like those of its relatives, the kingfishers, the nest tends to contain copious amounts of faeces and smell very foul as a protection against predators.