Knobbed Hornbill

This large hornbill, endemic to Celebes in the huge Indonesian archipelago, looks very spectacular with its black plumage and its yellow neck. It carries, like all hornbills, a big and colourful beak, with an impressive casque (yellow for the female) and a pouch on its throat of deep-blue bare skin.

It lives in primary forests, feeding on insects, small vertebrates and wild fruit.

As with most hornbills, when breeding period has arrived, the female is literally imprisoned in a tree-cavity, the entrance to which is sealed by the couple – except for a small opening – by means of a solid coating like plaster. The female is completely dependent upon the male during her two months of imprisonment, while she incubates the clutch and raises the fledglings. Once the fledglings get too big, the female will leave the nest and both parents continue to raise the young until they fledge.

The species has considerably declined during recent decades because of deforestation. It is regarded as vulnerable but fortunately it reproduces in zoological gardens.