Big Bill Hornbill

Hello lovely people hope you all enjoyed the Pench Trip report, I am sure you will plan a trip to Mowgli’s world soon. So what do you expect today? I know something unique is now expected every week, your expectations motivate me to find something new for you even though it is a very difficult task but I love my followers and hence little bit difficulty shall not be a problem. After thinking a lot I have decided to write on one of the different bird, which is unique in behavior as well in its looks, yes I am talking about Hornbills a lovely bird known for its huge bills, let us learn more about bili bird

Hornbill a unique character

The bird has really different and interesting characters and hence updating you these characters herewith, I am sure you will be surprised to know about such interesting features

The bird is so different that it differs in size from within hornbill category, it shows considerable variation in size. Black dwarf hornbill is of around 102 grams with 1 ft in length whereas the great hornbill reaches up to 4 kg with 3 to 4 ft in length, isn’t is a unique character, of course, it is because such wide variation within the bird is in itself is a rare feature

The most distinctive feature of the hornbill is its heavy bill, supported by powerful neck muscles as well as by the fused vertebrae. The large bill assists in fighting, preening, constructing the nest, and catching prey

Hornbills possess binocular vision, although unlike most birds with this type of vision, the bill intrudes on their visual field. This allows them to see their own bill tip and aids in precision handling of food objects with their bill, also it has large eyelashes that act as a sunshade also protect the eyes

A last but very important characteristic of Hornbill is that it has a two-lobed kidney. They are the only birds in which the first and second neck vertebrae (the atlas and axis respectively) are fused together; this probably provides a more stable platform for carrying the bill

Now after unique characters let us now see how fantastic this bird is, fantastic features are listed below for your information

The Fantastic facts

Hornbills are omnivorous birds, eating fruit, insects, and small animals. They cannot swallow food caught at the tip of the beak, as their tongues are too short to manipulate it, so they toss it back to the throat with a jerk of the head

A number of hornbills have associations with other animal species. Hornbills are known to forage co-operatively with Dwarf Mongooses, catching prey items that the mongooses scratch up from the ground. In return, the hornbills alert the mongooses to danger from overhead raptors

Hornbills are omnivorous and eat both plants and animals. In the wild, they eat a lot of fruit, but also insects, snails, crabs, frogs, nestling birds, bats, and lizards

India has nine hornbill species, of which four are found in the Western Ghats: Indian Grey Hornbill (endemic to India), the Malabar Grey Hornbill (endemic to the Western Ghats), Malabar Pied Hornbill (endemic to India and Sri Lanka) and the widely distributed but endangered Great Hornbill

The festival is named after the Indian hornbill, the large and colorful forest bird which is displayed in the folklore of most of the state's tribes. The Hornbill Festival is held at Naga Heritage Village, Kisama which is about 12 km from Kohima. All the tribes of Nagaland take part in this festival. The aim of the festival is to revive and protect the rich culture of Nagaland and display its extravaganza and traditions

I am sure now you will agree that Hornbill is a fantastic bird with some unique facts and features, do capture Hornbills when you visit any such forest in future and try to compare the features you may capture in the wilderness