Seeking

Featured animal:  Great Indian hornbill male (Buceros bicornis)

Photo credit: None

Location:  India

This is a male Great Indian hornbill on a fig tree. In the wild, the great hornbill’s diet consists mainly of fruit.  Figs are particularly important and they also eat jamoons among other fruits. They are a sight to see when they hop up and down along a fig tree to find the best fruits.  Their movements are slow and measured and they toss and eat the figs deftly.  They also eat small mammals, birds, reptiles and insects. They forage along branches, moving along by hopping, looking for insects, nestling birds and small lizards, tearing up bark and examining them. Prey are caught, tossed in the air and swallowed. The most prominent feature of the hornbill is the bright yellow and black casque on top of its massive bill.  The size of the bird, eyes, and casque are the main noticeable differences between the sexes.