''Tockus'' is a
genus
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial n ...
of birds in the hornbill family,
Bucerotidae
Hornbills (Bucerotidae) are a family of bird found in tropical and subtropical Africa, Asia and Melanesia. They are characterized by a long, down-curved bill which is frequently brightly coloured and sometimes has a casque on the upper mandi ...
, which are native to
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
.
Description
Hornbills in the genus ''Tockus'' are medium-sized African birds with triangular shaped curved bills. They can be found in
tropical
The tropics are the regions of Earth surrounding the Equator. They are defined in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the Northern Hemisphere at N and the Tropic of Capricorn in
the Southern Hemisphere at S. The tropics are also referred to ...
and
sub-tropical Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
n grasslands, forests and savannahs. They all have long tail feathers which are black on the exterior and white on the interior.
Species
*
Monteiro's hornbill (''Tockus monteiri'')
*
Red-billed hornbill group
**
Northern red-billed hornbill (''Tockus erythrorhynchus'')
**
Damara red-billed hornbill (''Tockus damarensis'')
**
Southern red-billed hornbill
The southern red-billed hornbill (''Tockus rufirostris'') is a species of hornbill in the family Bucerotidae, which is native to the savannas and dryer bushlands of southern Africa. It is replaced by a near-relative, the Damara red-billed hornbi ...
(''Tockus rufirostris'')
**
Tanzanian red-billed hornbill (''Tockus ruahae'')
**
Western red-billed hornbill (''Tockus kempi'')
*
Yellow-billed hornbill Yellow-billed hornbill is a common name for several birds in the genus ''Tockus'' and may refer to one of the following:
* Eastern yellow-billed hornbill, ''Tockus flavirostris''
* Southern yellow-billed hornbill
The southern yellow-billed hornb ...
group
**
Southern yellow-billed hornbill (''Tockus leucomelas'')
**
Eastern yellow-billed hornbill
The eastern yellow-billed hornbill (''Tockus flavirostris''), also known as the northern yellow-billed hornbill, is a species of hornbill in the family Bucerotidae. It is found in Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, Tanzania ...
(''Tockus flavirostris'')
*
Von der Decken's hornbill (''Tockus deckeni'')
*
Jackson's hornbill
Jackson's hornbill (''Tockus jacksoni'') is a species of hornbill in the family Bucerotidae. It is only found in North West Kenya and North East Uganda. Except for the dense white spots on the wing-coverts, it resembles, and is often considered ...
(''Tockus jacksoni'')
References
* Gordon Lindsay Maclean - ''Robert's Birds of South Africa'', 6th Edition
Bird genera
{{Coraciiformes-stub