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Poser with "Up-Up-Up" salute
Photo: Thomas Hinsche / imagebroker / IMAGO
The competition was fierce.
In the end, however, the winner prevailed confidently against the house martin, bloodline, tree sparrow and wheatear: the eye-catching hoopoe is "Bird of the Year" 2022. It won 32 percent of the votes.
More than 142,000 people took part in the online vote, according to the Naturschutzbund Deutschland (Nabu) and the Bavarian State Association for Bird Protection (LBV).
It is the second time that the two nature conservation associations publicly called for the election of the annual bird.
They have been awarding the title for 50 years - so far, however, experts have chosen the bird of the year.
In the anniversary year, the population was allowed to vote for the first time and voted for the robin.
The hoopoe is distinctive.
With its long beak and the orange crown feathers with the black dots, which it erects when excited, it has the reputation of a self-promoter.
It loves warm regions, which is why it only occurs in certain regions in Germany, such as the Kaiserstuhl in Baden-Württemberg.
As a migratory bird, it spends the winter in Africa.
Its scientific generic name "Upupa" is an imitation of the sound of his three-syllable "up-up-up" salute.
“The hoopoe is one of our most noticeable native birds.
His spectacular orange-red plumage with the distinctive feather bonnet has definitely earned him one or the other voice, "said LBV Chairman Norbert Schäffer.
The hoopoe also stands for an important nature conservation issue.
Although it is unmistakable, bird fans rarely see the hoopoe: only a few hundred breeding pairs of the bird, which is considered endangered, still live in Germany.
According to Nabu, the hoopoe needs open, species-rich landscapes such as vineyards, orchards and embankments.
The decline in insects and the loss of natural nesting sites are troublesome for him.
fww / dpa
