White-Crested Hornbill (Aceros comatus)

Family: BUCEROTIDAE

Hornbills are large, black or brown, and white, mainly arboreal birds, with long, heavy bills. Many species have large protuberant casques on top of the bill which may be gaudily coloured. Hornbills are found throughout Africa and tropical Asia, and throughout Indonesia to New Guinea. They eat fruit and insects and have harsh, penetrating calls.

The nesting habits of the family are interesting. The incubating females are usually sealed into tree hole nests with mud, leaving only a small aperture through which food can be passed by the male. When the young are hatched the female breaks out but reseals the nest entrance again until the young are ready to leave. Ten species of hornbill occur in Sumatra, eight in Borneo, but only three are found in Java.

Description: Also known as white-crowned hornbill. Large (85cm) long-tailed, black and white hornbill with distinctive fuzzy white crown. Both sexes have white crown, tail and trailing edge of wing. Throat and neck are white in male, black in female.
Iris - yellow; bill - grey; feet - black.

Voice: Lively hollow, pigeon-like kuk kuk, kuk kuk kuk, or single soft hao call. First note is longest.

Range: NE India, coastal Burma, Malay Peninsula, Sumatra and Borneo.

Distribution and status: A local bird of hill forests in the northern two thirds of Sumatra and northern half of Borneo.

Habits: A bird of the middle and lower forest storeys.