Green Wood Hoopoe
Green Wood HoopoeGreen Wood HoopoeGreen Wood HoopoeGreen Wood Hoopoe

Green Wood Hoopoe

Phoeniculus purpureus

Silhouette: Jon Hill (Photo by DickDaniels: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Green_Woodhoopoe_RWD7.jpg) · PhyloPic

Least ConcernNear ThreatenedVulnerableEndangeredCritically Endangered
Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
at Masai Mara National Reserve
128 Verified sightings at Masai Mara National Reserve From 2019 to 2026
9,037 Verified sightings across all 48 parks From 2019 to 2026
May Best month highest sighting rate
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted during daytime hours (6am–6pm)

About the Green Wood Hoopoe

The green wood hoopoe (Phoeniculus purpureus) is a large, up to 44 cm (17 in) long tropical bird native to Africa. It is a member of the family Phoeniculidae, the wood hoopoes, and was formerly known as the red-billed wood hoopoe.

In 1784 the English illustrator John Frederick Miller included a hand-coloured plate of the green wood hoopoe in his Icones animalium et plantarum. He coined the binomial name Promerops purpureus and mistakenly specified the type locality as eastern India. The green wood hoopoe is now one of five species placed in the genus Phoeniculus that was introduced in 1821 by the Polish zoologist Feliks Paweł Jarocki.

Six subspecies are recognised: P. p. senegalensis (Vieillot, 1822) – south Senegal to south Ghana P. p. guineensis (Reichenow, 1902) – north Senegal and Gambia to Chad and Central African Republic P. p. niloticus (Neumann, 1903) – Sudan to west Ethiopia and northeast DR Congo

P. p. marwitzi (Reichenow, 1906) – east Uganda and Kenya to east South Africa P. p. angolensis (Reichenow, 1902) – Angola and west Zambia to northeast Namibia and north Botswana P. p. purpureus (Miller, JF, 1784) – central, southwest South Africa

The green wood hoopoe... Wikipedia →

Closest Relatives at Masai Mara National Reserve

Abyssinian Scimitarbill
LC

Abyssinian Scimitarbill

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Rhinopomastus minor

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
Common Scimitarbill
LC

Common Scimitarbill

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Rhinopomastus cyanomelas

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
Southern Ground-Hornbill
VU

Southern Ground-Hornbill

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Bucorvus leadbeateri

Daily sighting probability ~30% · Possible
African Grey Hornbill
LC

African Grey Hornbill

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Lophoceros nasutus

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
Common Hoopoe
LC

Common Hoopoe

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Upupa epops

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
African Hoopoe

African Hoopoe

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Upupa africana

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
Von der Decken's Hornbill
LC

Von der Decken's Hornbill

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Tockus deckeni

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
Black-and-white-casqued Hornbill
LC

Black-and-white-casqued Hornbill

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Bycanistes subcylindricus

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
Crowned Hornbill
LC

Crowned Hornbill

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Lophoceros alboterminatus

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
Northern Red-billed Hornbill
LC

Northern Red-billed Hornbill

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Tockus erythrorhynchus

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data
Silvery-cheeked Hornbill
LC

Silvery-cheeked Hornbill

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Bycanistes brevis

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

Global Distribution

Warmer areas are where this animal is recorded most often.

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Gonarezhou National Park 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe
~60%
2 Niokolo-Koba National Park 🇸🇳 Senegal
~50%
3 Mana Pools National Park 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe
~40%
4 Liwonde National Park 🇲🇼 Malawi
~40%
5 Lake Nakuru National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
~40%
6 Lower Zambezi National Park 🇿🇲 Zambia
~40%
7 Kruger National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
~40%
8 Moremi Game Reserve 🇧🇼 Botswana
~30%
9 Kidepo Valley National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
~30%
10 Kafue National Park 🇿🇲 Zambia
~30%
11 Gorongosa National Park 🇲🇿 Mozambique
~30%
12 Hwange National Park 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe
~30%
13 Mikumi National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
~30%
14 South Luangwa National Park 🇿🇲 Zambia
~30%
15 Lake Mburo National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
~20%
16 Akagera National Park 🇷🇼 Rwanda
~20%
17 Tarangire National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
~20%
18 Selous Game Reserve 🇹🇿 Tanzania
~20%
19 Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
~20%
20 Garden Route National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
~10%
21 Pilanesberg National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
~10%
22 Chobe National Park 🇧🇼 Botswana
~10%
23 Addo Elephant National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
~10%
24 Ruaha National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
~10%
25 Meru National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
~10%
26 Lake Manyara National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
~10%
27 Murchison Falls National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
~10%
28 Samburu National Reserve 🇰🇪 Kenya
~10%
29 Tsavo East National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
~10%
30 Tsavo West National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
~10%
31 Serengeti National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
~10%
32 Waterberg Plateau Park 🇳🇦 Namibia
<5%
33 Ngorongoro Conservation Area 🇹🇿 Tanzania
<5%
34 Masai Mara National Reserve 🇰🇪 Kenya
<5%
35 Queen Elizabeth National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
<5%
36 Mkomazi National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
<5%
37 iSimangaliso Wetland Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
<5%
38 Amboseli National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
<5%
39 Aberdare National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
<5%
40 Arusha National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
<5%
41 Virunga National Park 🇨🇩 Democratic Republic of the Congo
<5%
42 Etosha National Park 🇳🇦 Namibia
<5%
43 Golden Gate Highlands National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
Insufficient data
44 Nairobi National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
Insufficient data
45 Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
Insufficient data
46 Nyungwe National Park 🇷🇼 Rwanda
Insufficient data
47 Bwindi Impenetrable National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
Insufficient data
48 Kibale National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
Insufficient data

Quick answers

What are the chances of seeing a Green Wood Hoopoe in Masai Mara National Reserve?

Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Green Wood Hoopoe sighting in Masai Mara National Reserve, based on 128 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data.

When is the best time to see Green Wood Hoopoe in Masai Mara National Reserve?

May has the highest sighting rate for Green Wood Hoopoe in Masai Mara National Reserve in our monthly data.

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