Crowned Hornbill
Lophoceros alboterminatus
Dark brown hornbill with a white belly and an orange bill. The white corners of the tail are conspicuous in flight. Males and females are similar, but male has a bigger casque on top of the bill. Found in lush woodland, forest, and forest edge. Often in small flocks. Call is a long series of high, piping notes. Has little overlap in range with similar hornbills, and is unique in having a yellow eye.
Identification
It is a medium-sized bird, 50–54 centimetres (20–21 in) in length, and is characterized by its white belly and black back and wings. The tips of the long tail feathers are white. The eyes are yellow; the beak is red and presents a stocky casque on the upper mandible. In females, the casque is smaller. The crowned hornbill can be distinguished from the similar Bradfield's hornbill by its shorter beak.
Taxonomy
- Scientific name
- Lophoceros alboterminatus
- Authority
- Büttikofer, 1889
- Order
- Bucerotiformes
- Family
- Bucerotidae
- Genus
- Lophoceros
Range and habitat
The crowned hornbill is a common resident of the coastal and riverine forests of southern (only the eastern coast) to northeastern Africa.
- Migration
- Resident species
Conservation
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Antarctic Tern
Sterna vittata
A light gray medium-sized tern. Black cap extends to bill in breeding plumage. Bill and legs red. In non-breeding birds, cap reduced to just the area behind the eye, bill has dull pinkish color, and underparts are white. Breeds in the circumpolar subantarctic region. Generally known to stay close to their breeding sites. Migrating Arctic Tern could occur in the same area, but not in breeding plumage, and would show more prominent black markings on outer primaries. White-fronted Tern can be distinguished by its larger body, lighter coloring, and longer, thinner, all-black bill.
Whiskered Screech-Owl
Megascops trichopsis
Small owl restricted to oak woodlands in canyons and foothills in Mexico, barely reaching into southeast Arizona and southwest New Mexico. Finely patterned in gray, black, and white. Very similar to Western Screech-Owl; best distinguished by voice. Two song types: one a relatively even series of five to eight "toot" notes; the other sounds like morse code: "toot-toot, toot, toot, toot-toot, toot." Also note paler bill than Western Screech-Owl.
Imperial Amazon
Amazona imperialis
A rather large, dark, and stout resident of wet upland forest. Note iridescent purple underparts, vivid green upperparts, and hefty black bill. The Red-necked Parrot, the only other native species within its range, can be readily separated from the Imperial Parrot by its largely green plumage and the red (not purple) patch on its throat. Most common call is a yelping "weep", also gives a loud, scratchy “eee-er.”
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