Trumpeter Hornbill
Bycanistes bucinator
A large, mostly black-and-white hornbill that occurs in thickets, dense woodland, and riverine and coastal forest. It can be surprisingly inconspicuous while eating large fruit in forest trees, but in flight it has noisy wingbeats and a far-carrying baby-like wailing “whaaaaaa waa waa” call. In flight note narrow white hind edges to the mostly dark wings; the similar Black-and-white-casqued Hornbill has a very broad white hind edge, and the Silvery-cheeked Hornbill has no white hind edge.
Identification
The trumpeter hornbill (Bycanistes bucinator) is a medium-sized hornbill, with length between 58 and 65 cm (23 and 26 in), characterized by a large grey casque on the bill, smaller in females. The eyes are brown or red, with pink surrounding skin. Body mass is between 0.45 and 1 kg (0.99 and 2.20 lb). It is similar to silvery-cheeked hornbill. Distinguishing features include an all-black back, white belly and white underwing coverts (in flight, wings present white tips), and red facial skin. The trumpeter hornbill is a gregarious bird, usually living in groups of two to five individuals, although sometimes as many as fifty. This hornbill is a locally common resident of the tropical evergreen forests of Burundi, Mozambique, Botswana, Congo, North Pare Mountains of Tanzania, Kenya, the Caprivi strip of Namibia and eastern South Africa, where it feeds on fruits and large insects. Like other hornbills, the females incubate four to five white eggs while sealed in the nest compartment.
Taxonomy
Genus: Bycanistes; Family: Bucerotidae; Order: Bucerotiformes.
- Scientific name
- Bycanistes bucinator
- Authority
- (Temminck, 1824)
- Order
- Bucerotiformes
- Family
- Bucerotidae
- Genus
- Bycanistes
Range and habitat
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
Migration pattern: Resident species.
Conservation
Population trend: declining.
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Malawi Batis
Batis dimorpha
A cute, dumpy, colorful flycatcher-like bird that flits around in the mid-canopy and understory of forest, forest edge, plantations, and gardens. Males have a broad black chest band, yellow-orange eye, white stripe through the top of the wing, and white throat. Females have an orange eye, buff-and-white stripe through the top of the wing, and rufous chin patch. The song is a series of 8-9 plaintive steady piping “peooop” notes, and calls include buzzing grating “ddrz-drrzt-drrr, ddt-ddzt-drzt-drr”. Female Dark Batis is distinguished by its darker (rich rufous rather than white and buff) wing stripe. Male Dark Batis is very similar, but has a slightly longer tail and broader black breast stripe. Also similar to Chinspot Batis, but has darker orange color to the eyes, and female Malawi Batis shows paler rufous on the throat and buff tinges to the wing stripe.
Damara Tern
Sternula balaenarum
A very small, short-tailed tern of coastal waters. It often flies slowly on rapidly-beating wings with its head angled downwards, before hovering and plunge-diving to catch small fish. When breeding, it has a complete black skull cap and bill; when not breeding the front of the forehead turns white. It breeds on barren gravel plains and dunes but is most frequently encountered foraging over estuaries, lagoons, and near shore. Its strident “tsit-tsit” call is higher-pitched than those of other terns. In non-breeding plumage, the very similar Little Tern has contrasting paler rump and tail, while Damara Tern’s back, rump, and tail are all the same shade of pale gray.
Tamaulipas Pygmy-Owl
Glaucidium sanchezi
Very small owl of tropical forest in the foothills of northeast Mexico where it is endemic. Favors forest canopy and is rarely seen, but sometimes hunts low at edges; active in the daytime. Most often detected by its distinctive tooting call, given at any time of day but mainly early and late: 13 slow-paced hollow hoots, repeated after a pause. Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl favors more open habitats, is seen much more frequently, and has pale streaks (not spots) on the crown and a very different tooting song.
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