The red-billed hornbills are a group of

hornbill Hornbills are birds found in tropical and subtropical Africa, Asia and Melanesia of the family Bucerotidae. They are characterized by a long, down-curved bill which is frequently brightly coloured and sometimes has a horny casque on the upper ...

s found in the

savanna A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland-grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) biome and ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach th ...

s and

woodland A woodland () is, in the broad sense, land covered with woody plants (trees and shrubs), or in a narrow sense, synonymous with wood (or in the U.S., the '' plurale tantum'' woods), a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunli ...

s of

sub-Saharan Africa Sub-Saharan Africa is the area and regions of the continent of Africa that lie south of the Sahara. These include Central Africa, East Africa, Southern Africa, and West Africa. Geopolitically, in addition to the list of sovereign states and ...

. They are now usually

split Split(s) or The Split may refer to: Places * Split, Croatia, the largest coastal city in Croatia * Split Island, Canada, an island in the Hudson Bay * Split Island, Falkland Islands * Split Island, Fiji, better known as Hạfliua Arts, enter ...

into five species, the

northern red-billed hornbill The northern red-billed hornbill (''Tockus erythrorhynchus'') is a species of hornbill in the family Bucerotidae. It is found from southern Mauritania through Somalia and northeast Tanzania. There are five species of red-billed hornbills recogni ...

(''Tockus erythrorhynchus''), western red-billed hornbill (''T. kempi''), Tanzanian red-billed hornbill (''T. ruahae''), southern red-billed hornbill (''T. rufirostris'') and Damara red-billed hornbill (''T. damarensis''), but some authorities consider the latter four all

subspecies In Taxonomy (biology), biological classification, subspecies (: subspecies) is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (Morphology (biology), morpholog ...

of ''Tockus erythrorhynchus''.

Description

This group of conspicuous birds have mainly whitish underparts and head, grey upperparts, long tails, and a long curved red bill which lacks a casque. The sexes are similar, but the female has a smaller bill. They are generally large, at long, but the entire group is considered one of the smaller hornbills.

Behaviour

Breeding

During incubation, the female lays three to six white eggs in a tree hole that has been converted to a nest, which is blocked off with a plaster of mud, droppings and fruit pulp, with her inside, where she remains for a time after the eggs are hatched. The nest is built by both parents. Once the mother is inside the nest, there is only one narrow aperture, just big enough for the male to transfer food gathered from the outside habitat, to the mother and the chicks. When the chicks and the female are too big for the nest, the mother breaks out and rebuilds the wall, leaving the chicks inside for their continued protection from predators. Then both parents continued to feed the chicks.

Nesting

The female red-billed hornbill protects her young against intruders by building a wall across the opening of her nest. She then seals herself in and brings up her chicks in the enclosed space.

Feeding

They are

omnivorous An omnivore () is an animal that regularly consumes significant quantities of both plant and animal matter. Obtaining energy and nutrients from plant and animal matter, omnivores digest carbohydrates, protein, fat, and fiber, and metabolize ...

, taking and eating

insect Insects (from Latin ') are Hexapoda, hexapod invertebrates of the class (biology), class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body (Insect morphology#Head, head, ...

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants (angiosperms) that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which angiosperms disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particular have long propaga ...

seed In botany, a seed is a plant structure containing an embryo and stored nutrients in a protective coat called a ''testa''. More generally, the term "seed" means anything that can be Sowing, sown, which may include seed and husk or tuber. Seeds ...

s and even small

rodent Rodents (from Latin , 'to gnaw') are mammals of the Order (biology), order Rodentia ( ), which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and Mandible, lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal specie ...

s. They feed mainly on the ground and will form flocks outside the breeding season.

Gallery

Bird of Botswana.jpg, The southern species ''T. rufirostris'' is endemic to

southern Africa Southern Africa is the southernmost region of Africa. No definition is agreed upon, but some groupings include the United Nations geoscheme for Africa, United Nations geoscheme, the intergovernmental Southern African Development Community, and ...

Hornbill, Ethiopia (47971177468), crop.jpg, The

has reddish ocular skin and dark eyes. Red-billed hornbill, Ruaha National Park (3) (28404613034), crop.jpg, '' T. ruahae'' is endemic to

Tanzania Tanzania, officially the United Republic of Tanzania, is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It is bordered by Uganda to the northwest; Kenya to the northeast; the Indian Ocean to the east; Mozambique and Malawi to t ...

LophocerosDamarensisKeulemans.jpg, up'' T. damarensis'', illustration by Keulemans, 1892 Westlicher Rotschnabeltoko (Tockus kempi).jpg, left, '' T. kempi'' of

West Africa West Africa, also known as Western Africa, is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations geoscheme for Africa#Western Africa, United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Gha ...

is the only species with both dark eyes and black ocular skin

References

* ''Birds of The Gambia'' by Barlow, Wacher and Disley,

External links

Red-billed Hornbill videos, photos & sounds
on the Internet Bird Collection * Red-billed hornbill �
Species text in The Atlas of Southern African Birds
{{Taxonbar, from=Q15708861

red-billed hornbill The red-billed hornbills are a group of hornbills found in the savannas and woodlands of sub-Saharan Africa. They are now usually Lumpers_and_splitters#Biology, split into five species, the northern red-billed hornbill (''Tockus erythrorhynchus ...

Birds of Sub-Saharan Africa Bird common names Animal species groups