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Hoopoe crowned nat'l bird By Zafrir Rinat It is not impressive in size like the eagle or rare like the red falcon, but as of yesterday, the hoopoe is Israel's national bird. Following a six-month contest, President Shimon Peres yesterday declared the hoopoe the winner from among ten candidates. Contest organizers hope the bird will now appear on coins, stamps and clothing. Advertisement No other country has adopted the hoopoe as its national bird, according to Dan Alon, head of the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel's Ornithological Center and one of the organizers. The hoopoe garnered 35 percent of the popular vote, barely edging out the goldfinch and the warbler. However, it won the unanimous support of a public committee, and since the national bird committee's vote was worth one-quarter of the total vote, that gave the hoopoe a decisive victory. In the birdwatching community, reactions to the results were mixed. Alon said he had supported the goldfinch at the beginning of the process. "The finch's numbers are declining and it is being hunted," he explained. Dr Uzi Paz, a veteran birder and former head of the Israel Nature and Parks Authority, supported the warbler: "That is a bird I researched, so I was rooting for it." However, the birding community has come out firmly behind the hoopoe since its election. "This bird has adjusted to the presence of mankind and can now be seen in many more places than in the past," Paz said in its praise. "It lives mostly off crickets found on lawns. It is not a songbird, but chirps when it wants to take over territory. There is no external difference between male and female hoopoes." "The hoopoe sits on its eggs in holes, which is interesting among birds," Alon noted. "It usually uses existing holes in trees, or even gaps between building blocks. There is a year-round population that nests in Israel, but also some that pass through during the migration season." According to Dr. Yossi Leshem of Israel's International Center for the Study of Bird Migration at Latrun, who was Alon's partner in organizing the national bird selection, the process was not just a competition, but a lesson in democracy and in bird preservation awareness. "Educational activities were held in thousands of schools and preschools, and everyone could learn about how to vote and have influence," Leshem said during yesterday's ceremony. He was praised by many attendees for his work, and the master of ceremonies, journalist Motti Kirschenbaum, suggested choosing Leshem as the national birdwatcher. Environment Minister Gideon Ezra talked about the problems facing Israel's birds, including electrocution, poisoning and accidental trapping in fish nets. But this is not the end of activities to make birds into Israeli symbols: Leshem announced that Tel Aviv has chosen the swallow as its municipal bird and appointed Leshem to build nesting boxes throughout the city. Bookmark to del.icio.us   Bad immigrant Hezbollah spy said he acted as a 'Lebanese patriot and a Muslim.' When (he's) in Rome Israel to launch PR campaign against Ahmadinejad visit to UN summit in Rome.

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