Indian Grey Hornbill

About Indian Grey Hornbill

• The Indian grey hornbill is a tropical bird found on the Indian subcontinent.
• Scientific name: Its scientific name is Ocyceros birostris. 
• Habitat: It prefers dry plains, foothills, and open habitats.
• Distribution: Among all the hornbill species in India, the Indian grey hornbill is the most widely distributed.
  • Its range spans the length (Jammu to Kerala) and breadth (Rajasthan to West Bengal) of India. 
  • It is also distributed in parts of some neighbouring countries, including Pakistan, Nepal, and Bangladesh. 
  • It doesn’t migrate but may make local movements in the drier western region. 
• Characteristics:
  • Appearance:  Unlike the eight other hornbill species found in India, the Indian grey hornbill is not brightly coloured. 
    • It is a medium-sized bird with greyish-brown upper parts and a slight trace of a pale supercilium.
    • The ear coverts are darker.
    • The flight feathers of the wing are dark brown with a whitish tip.
    • The tail has a white tip and a dark subterminal band.
    • It has a red iris, and the eyelids have eyelashes. The casque is short and pointed.
    • The male has a larger casque on a dark bill, and the culmen and lower mandible are yellowish.
      • The bare skin around the eye is dark in males, but sometimes pale reddish in females.
    • The female has a more yellowish bill with black on the basal half and on the casque.
    • The juveniles lack the casque, and the bare skin around the eye is dull orange.
  • Diet: It is a herbivore (frugivore). Sometimes, it also feeds on molluscs, scorpions, insects, small birds, and reptiles.
  • Behaviour: It is active during the day and usually spends time in pairs or small groups.
    • It is arboreal, but very rarely descends to the ground.
    • It is quite noisy, producing squealing calls, loud cackling, or short pipping-like sounds.
    • Its flight is heavy, involving flapping interspersed with glides.
    • It prefers mature trees with large trunk girths, particularly Sterculia urens and Terminalia bellirica.
• Ecological role: It plays a crucial ecological role as a long-distance seed disperser, helping regenerate forests by transporting seeds of fruit-bearing trees across large areas
• Threat: It is mainly threatened by the :
  • Loss of dry forests and fruit trees
  • Hunting, and
  • Disturbance from agriculture and livestock grazing
• Conservation status:
  • IUCN Red List:  Least Concern (LC)