Birds


Lesser Pied Kingfisher | Crimsonbreasted Barbet | Common Hoopoe
River Tern | Indian Robin | Oriental Magpie-Robin | Indian Roller
Cattle Egret | Redvented Bulbul | House Sparrow | Grey Tit
Common Myna




Photograph by H. Satish, A.R.P.S., M.F.I.A.P

Common Hoopoe

» SCIENTIFIC NAME: Upupa epops
» KANNADA NAME: Nelakutuka
» HINDI NAME: Hudhud

A bold, beautiful and friendly bird, which is being seen less and less in Bangalore. Its facial and body contortions while calling, and its peculiar, waddling gait are comical to watch.

Colour and description: About the size of a myna. Fawn coloured, with a fan-shaped, black-tipped crest; black-and-white markings on back, wings and tail; and white abdomen. The male is larger and more colourful than the female, which is darker. Long, slender, curved bill.

Call: A resonant, musical ‘hoo-po’ or ‘hoo-po-po’, repeated in runs for several minutes at a stretch.

Food: Insects, grubs, larvae, pupae.

Nesting season: Principally February to May. Males feed incubating females at the nest. Both share in parental duties.

Nest: Cracks in walls, under tiles, also in holes in trees. Deplorable nest hygiene: lined with rags, rubbish and straw, nests tend to be foul-smelling.

Eggs: Five or six, white.