Buceros bicornis

The male adult of the double-horned hornbill has a 30 cm long beak and a large and wide helmet process. The upper surface of the helmet process is slightly concave, and the front edge forms two horn-shaped protrusions, which are like the big horns on the nose of a rhinoceros. The ancient warrior's helmet was very powerful, hence the name double-horned hornbill. The upper mouth and the top of the helmet are orange-red, the sides of the mouth are orange-yellow, and the lower mouth is ivory white. Its cheeks, chin and throat are all black, the back of its head and neck are milky white, the coverts on its back, shoulders, waist, chest and tail are all black, and the coverts on its abdomen and under the tail are white. The wings are also black, but the tips of the wings are white, and there are obvious white wing spots, which are extremely eye-catching. The tail feathers are white, but have black stripes near the end. The legs are gray-green with brown stains, and the claws are almost

Origin: Bhutan, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Thailand, Vietnam.
Introduced: Singapore. Migrant bird: Bangladesh.
In China, it is only distributed in Xishuangbanna in southern Yunnan.
The double-horned hornbill is a resident bird, mainly inhabiting evergreen broad-leaved forests in low mountains and foothill plains below 1,500 meters above sea level, especially in the valleys in the forest near turbulent streams.

Great Hornbill has two subspecies.

Great Hornbill often moves alone during the breeding season, and likes to move in groups on tall banyan trees during the non-breeding season. When the fruits are ripe, most hornbills feed in one place until all the food is eaten. They often fly in groups, one after another. When flying, the speed is not fast, and the posture is also very strange. The head and neck are stretched straight, the wings are flat, and after flapping up and down several times, they glide forward, and then flap the wings a few more times, and repeat this process, like shaking. Because the underwing cover feathers cannot cover the base of the flight feathers, there will be a loud sound between the flight feathers when flying. When it calls, the neck is vertically upward, the beak points to the sky, and it makes a rough and loud call. At sunset, it flies to the top of a big tree covered by dense leaves to spend the night.

The double-horned hornbill has a large appetite and a diverse diet. It mainly feeds on fruits and seeds of various tropical plants, and also eats large insects, reptiles, rodents and other animal food. They usually forage on trees, but sometimes on the ground. The big beak of the hornbill looks heavy, but it is actually a tool and a weapon. It is very dexterous to use. It can easily pick berries, crack nuts, and catch mice and insects.

The breeding season of the double-horned hornbill is from March to June every year. Most of the nests are made from natural tree holes on tall trees such as bodhi trees in the forest, which are processed and trimmed. This tree hole is large and wide, and is also high from the ground. Each nest usually lays 2 eggs, and a few have 1 or 3 eggs. The eggs are pure white when they are first laid, and then turn into light yellow or yellowish brown. The eggs are oval and measure 60-72 mm × 42-50 mm. The female bird is responsible for incubating the eggs, and the incubation period is about 31 days. The chicks are late-maturing. During the incubation period, the female bird mixes her leftover food scraps with feces and piles them at the entrance of the cave to close and shrink the entrance. At the same time, the male bird also uses its big mouth to pick up mud, fruits, seeds and sawdust to close the entrance of the cave, leaving only a small hole for the female bird's beak to stick out. The female bird incubates eggs and raises chicks in the cave, which is safe and comfortable, not afraid of wind and sun, and helps protect the chicks from threats and attacks by snakes, monkeys and birds of prey. When the female bird and the chicks defecate, they aim their anus at the entrance of the cave and spray directly out. The female bird also uses her mouth to clear the dirt in the cave from time to time to keep the cave clean. After the chicks are hatched, the female bird has to undergo a thorough molting. At this time, she has almost no ability to fly. After molting, she pecks through the seal of the cave entrance and flies out with the grown chicks. The food during the entire incubation and raising period is provided by the male bird. In order to ensure that both the female bird and the chicks can get enough food, the male bird must fly outside again and again to find food. At this time, the male bird will also shed a layer of wall membrane in its gizzard and spit it out of the body to form a thin sac, which it uses to temporarily store the berries, nuts and other food it finds and bring back to the nest. If the female bird does not extend its mouth to greet it, the male bird will gently knock on the tree trunk with its mouth to notify the female bird to eat. Therefore, by the end of the breeding season, the female bird and the chicks are very fat, while the male bird is exhausted and very thin. The female bird gets very dirty in the cave, but it needs to change its feathers before leaving the cave, so if it comes out early, it will have almost no ability to fly.

Although the double-horned hornbill has a wide distribution range, it occurs at a low density and is distributed in blocks. The moderate number is small and may decline rapidly and continuously within its distribution range, so it is listed as near threatened. It is rare in China and has been included in the list of national key protected wild animals.

The double-horned hornbill has been included in the Red List of Vulnerable Species by UNESCO.

Listed in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (IUCN) ver 3.1: 2020 - Vulnerable (VU).

Listed in China's National Key Protected Wildlife List (February 5, 2021) Level 1.  

Listed in Appendix I, Appendix II and Appendix III of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) 2019 Edition Appendix I.

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