Help for the Common Hoopoe: an ambitious project bears fruit

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).