The Common Hoopoe is a typical bird species of extensive and diverse cultivated landscapes. At the end of the last century it almost disappeared from Switzerland as a breeding bird due to increasingly intensive farming. It mainly lives in vineyards and orchard that are rich in large insects. Sparse or short vegetation cover makes it easier for the Common Hoopoe to access prey. It uses different kinds of hollows for breeding. In 2006 the population comprised just under 170 breeding pairs, and in 2016 it was estimated at 180-260 pairs. The species is classified as vulnerable on the Red List of Threatened Species (VU vulnerable).
©
© Mathias Schäf
The Hoopoe feeds its young with large insects and their larvae
©
© Jérôme Duplain
Nesting aids built into field barns are often used by the Common Hoopoe
©
© Markus Jenny
The Common Hoopoe finds sufficient food in vineyards with alternating short and tall vegetation
©
© Marcel Burkhardt
The Common Hoopoe seeks its food, such as mole crickets, on the ground, so it is dependent on patchy vegetation
©
© Mathias Schäf
©
© Jérôme Duplain
©
© Markus Jenny
©
© Marcel Burkhardt
The Hoopoe feeds its young with large insects and their larvae
Nesting aids built into field barns are often used by the Common Hoopoe
The Common Hoopoe finds sufficient food in vineyards with alternating short and tall vegetation
The Common Hoopoe seeks its food, such as mole crickets, on the ground, so it is dependent on patchy vegetation
Species promotion – Common Hoopoe
Help for the Common Hoopoe: an ambitious project bears fruit
Domain
Conservation
Unit
Species Recovery
Topics
Species Recovery, Habitat Promotion, Ecology
Habitat
semi-open farmland
Project start
2000
Project status
ongoing
Project management
Jérôme Duplain
Project region
Grisons, Vaud, Valais
Employees
Employee of the regional office Yverdon-les-Bains
Jérôme Duplain
+41 24 420 11 50
jerome.duplain@vogelwarte.ch
Employee of the regional office Yverdon-les-Bains
Yves Menétrey
+41 24 420 11 50
yves.menetrey@vogelwarte.ch
Species concerned
Unit
Species Recovery
Wildlife conservation coordinates the development, improvement and dissemination of measures in favour of priority bird species that cannot be helped by habitat protection alone. Together with BirdLife Switzerland and the Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN), the department also coordinates the “Species Recovery for Swiss Birds” programme.
