Species Fact Profile: Rhinoceros Hornbill (Buceros rhinoceros)

Rhinoceros Hornbill

Buceros rhinoceros (Linnaeus, 1758)

Range: Southeast Asia, Indonesia
Habitat: Rainforest
Diet: Fruit, Insects, Small Vertebrates
Social Grouping: Pairs, Small Flocks
Reproduction: Females nest inside tree cavities, sealed up except for a small opening, through which food and feces are exchanged.  1-2 eggs are laid.  Once the chicks are fully feathered, the parents unseal the nest to allow the mother and chicks to escape.
Lifespan: 35 Years
Conservation Status: IUCN Near Threatened, CITES Appendix II

• Body length 80-90 centimeters, wingspan about 1.5 meters.  Weight 2-3 kilograms, with males larger than females
• Plumage is black with some white on the legs and tail.  The enormous bill is orange or red, the color coming from an oil gland above the tail.  The bill is topped with a massive curved casque, resembling the horn of a rhinoceros.  Casque of the female is smaller than that of the male
• Males and females look alike except for the eyes, which are red in males and pale in females
• The rhinoceros hornbill is the national bird of Malaysia; it is also the state bird of the Malaysian state of Sarawak
• The hornbill is believed by some native cultures to be the king of the birds and to have supernatural powers; foreigners sometimes have misidentified it as the symbol of the Malayan god of war
• Primary threat to survival is habitat loss, especially loss of the large trees that the birds need for nesting.  It is sometimes hunted for meat and for its feathers