![]() When the female is ready to lay her 1-3 eggs, she will locate a cavity in a tree trunk (or sometimes a rock formation) to make her nest. They are cavity nesters but with a twist. ![]() The Hornbills are very unique in their nesting habits. “Rhinoceros Hornbill” by Steve Wilson – over 10 million views Thanks !! is licensed under CC BY 2.0 It is the easiest way to recognize each of the genders. In comparison, this is an image of the male so that you can see the difference in their eye colour. “Rhinoceros Hornbill” by shankar s. is licensed under CC BY 2.0 The eyes of the male are red with black rims while those of the female are white with a red rim like the one below. It is hollow and its function is to amplify the call of the birds. The structure on top of the bill is called a casque. The Hornbill uses this lightweight beak to gather its food, build its nests, seal the nest, and feed the chicks. In fact, that orange and red bill is what gave the bird its name. The Hornbill is most notable for its colourful bill which is huge. The birds are covered with black feathers except for the white tail that has a single black band. The Rhinoceros Hornbill is a large bird, 80 to 90 cm (31–35 in) long. Head hunting ended in the 20th century and most of the carvings are considered cultural icons. The carvings are still made today and they are still important for the various tribal communities. It called upon the spirit world to give courage to the warriors who went out headhunting. For the Iban, the figure is an essential part of a celebration called the Gawai Kenyalang. Historically, these carvings were associated with many of the tribes in Sarawak, Sabah, and Borneo. The Rhinoceros Hornbill is depicted in numerous designs in wood carving. The pattern in the textile below is called the ‘Feather of the Hornbill’. The threads are resist dyed before they are woven. The weavers of the area specialize in ikat. “Iban? Long House near Kuching” by rosskevin756 is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0 There the hornbill was also used as a design for the totems on the poles supporting their roof as well as on many of the art of tattoos. To actually see these highly endangered birds you needed a guide to take you to the jungle areas where local tribes still live in their long houses. You could not move through the area around the harbour of Kuching without seeing ‘something’ decorated with the motif of a hornbill – from table cloths, batik wall hangings, phone cases, and old and not-so-old wood carvings. The Rhinoceros Hornbill is present also in Sabah as well as Borneo, in yellow. I became acquainted with these amazing birds during a trip to the Sarawak in East Malaysia many years ago. The one that I want to focus on today is the Rhinoceros Hornbill. Only the Oriental Pied Hornbill, a species common in Southeast Asia, remains extant in Singapore.There are over 50 different varieties of Hornbill. Three species are believed to be native to Singapore-the Oriental Pied Hornbill (Anthracoceros albiros- tris), Rhinoceros Hornbill (Buceros rhinoceros), and Helmeted Hornbill (Rhinoplax vigil). There are 54 species of hornbills in the world-23 in Africa and 31 in Asia (12 in Southeast Asia). Singapore Hornbill Project:Known as “farmers of the forest”, hornbills play a crucial role in the spread and germination of the seeds from big-fruited forest trees. This photos was taken in year 2011 at Hindhede Park Singapore. It is found in lowland and montane, tropical and subtropical climates and in mountain rain forests up to 1,400 metres in Borneo, Sumatra, Java, the Malay Peninsula, Singapore, and southern Thailand. In captivity it can live for up to 35 years. The rhinoceros hornbill (Buceros rhinoceros) is a large species of forest hornbill. Singapore Geographic, Singapore Nature, Singapore Nature Photography
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