Southern Ground-Hornbill | Bucorvus leadbeateri
Robert's Birding Information: Southern Ground Hornbill
The Southern Ground-Hornbill is a Southern African bird that belongs to the Bucerotidae bird family group which includes birds such as Typical hornbills.
The description for the Southern Ground-Hornbill (Latin name Bucorvus leadbeateri) can be found in the 7th Edition of the Roberts Birds of Southern Africa. The Bucorvus leadbeateri can be quickly identified by its unique Roberts identification number of 463 and the detailed description of this bird is on page 158. You will find a picture of the Southern Ground-Hornbill on page 160.
NOTE: The reference for the information following is "Roberts Birds of Southern Africa", 7th Edition*. This edition contained a number of taxonomic changes as well as changes to English names used traditionally and in earlier editions of most bird books in South Africa. The following paragraph notes such changes if any.
. There have been no changes in the Latin name for the Southern Ground-Hornbill between the Roberts 6th and Roberts 7th Edition.
The Southern Ground-Hornbill is known in Afrikaans as Bromvoel.
The Southern Ground-Hornbill has a height of 130 cms and weighs around 3300 gms. The head is coloured black while the bill is coloured grey. The Bucorvus leadbeateri has a red coloured throat, black legs and a black coloured back. The eyes are yellow.
The male Bucorvus leadbeateri has physical features that are slightly different from the female bird.
Take note of the bird's main distinguishing features such as colour, size and leg length relative to the body size of the bird. Colours of a bird's body parts can be helpful. Be aware what may appear brown to one person is described in Roberts Birds using some other word ... for example brown, black. See colours used in Roberts.
Head is black.
Eyes are yellow.
Bill is grey.
Legs are black.
Throat is red.
Back is black.
Southern Ground Hornbill Feeding Habits ...
This bird forages for food on the ground.
This bird eats insects such as butterflies, bees, wasps, locusts and ants. These invertebrates are usually hawked aerially, killed and then eaten.
Breeding, Habitat and Nesting Habits ...
The Southern Ground-Hornbill is a monogamous bird which means that the bird finds and breeds with one partner for the rest of its life. The bird lays between 1 to 2 eggs and they are coloured white.
The bird builds its nest within a tree cavity just a few meters above the ground. The hole in the tree is normally reused in the next nesting season.
The bird is mainly found in the Savanna grasslands where it breeds and feeds.
This bird is very common in most of the Southern African Forests.
Seen in Flocks, Singles or Pairs Normally ...
The SOuthern Ground Hornbill occurs in small family groups!
