THE HOOPOE. 23 



and west Siberia, Asia Minor, Syria, Persia, Afghanistan, and Kash- 

 mir. On passage Canaries and Madeira ; casual Azores. During 

 migration and in winter in tropical Africa south to Cape Colony 

 (where also said to nest), and north-west India. Often strays north 

 of its regular range and has nested at least three times in Germany, 

 once found in Lapland, several times in central and even north 

 Russia, and in Scandinavia and Denmark, Heligoland, Germany, 

 Belgium, Holland, north France, and Luxemburg. 



[Note. — The Blue -tailed Bee-Eater, Merops philippinus L., recorded 

 from near Seaton Carew in 1862, cannot be admitted (Yarrell, n, p. 442 ; 

 Saunders, p. 284).] 



Order UPUPiE. 



Palate desmognathous ; cervical vertebrae 14 ; basi -pterygoid 

 processes and vomer absent. Ambiens muscle absent. Sternum 

 each side with one indentation. Oil-gland tufted. Bill long, 

 slender, slightly curved. 10 primaries, 10 rectrices. Tarsus short, 

 both in front and behind with scutes, like Larks. Third toe con- 

 nected with fourth at basal joint, second quite free. Skin thin 

 and soft. Eggs in holes. Old World only, Europe, Africa, Asia. 



Family UPUPIDiE. 



Only this one family, which is separable into two subfamilies : 

 Upupince with rounded, open nostrils and tail shorter than wing, 

 crest and no metallic gloss, and Irrisorince, restricted to tropical 

 Africa, with elongated nostril, partly with operculum, long graduated 

 tail and metallic colours. 



Genus UPUPA L. 



Upupa Linnseus, Syst. Nat., ed. x, i, p. 117 (1758 — Type by tautonymy: 

 " Upupa " = Upupa epops). 



Characters same as in subfamily Upupince of which it is the 

 only genus. One species with about 6 or 7 subspecies, Europe, 

 Africa and Asia. 



UPUPA EPOPS 



218. Upupa epops epops L.— THE HOOPOE. 



Upupa Epops Linnaeus, Syst. Nat., ed. x, i, p. 117 (1758 — Europe. 



Restricted typical locality : Sweden). 



Upupa epops Linnaeus, Yarrell, n, p. 419 ; Saunders, p. 285. 



Description. — Adult male. Winter and summer. — Fore-head and 

 hind-neck pale pinkish-brown ; feathers of crown much elongated 

 forming a large crest, with long black tips, those of fore -part shorter 



