Yellow Billed Hornbill on Acacia
Masai Mara National Reserve
Kenya
The hornbill family has eyelashes, which is rare among birds; ostriches, cuckoos, and some owls also have visible lashes. These simplified feathers serve a similar purpose to mammalian lashes, keeping debris out of the eye.
A pair of nesting hornbills will establish a breeding territory, walking with a slow gait and lowered head around its perimeter. They build a nest in a hollow branch or cavity within a cliff face. After mating, the female will enter the nest and the pair will work together to seal the entrance, using nesting materials and their own feces to cement the gap closed, leaving only a small space through which the male will pass the female food. The female hornbill will also molt her flight and tail feathers to line the nest. The female incubates the 2-3 eggs for 25 days and feeds the young for the first three weeks of life by regurgitating the food brought to her by the male. At this time, she leaves the nest and assists the male in bringing food back to the brood. The young fledge after around 45 days.
Yellow Billed Hornbill on Acacia
Masai Mara National Reserve
Kenya
The hornbill family has eyelashes, which is rare among birds; ostriches, cuckoos, and some owls also have visible lashes. These simplified feathers serve a similar purpose to mammalian lashes, keeping debris out of the eye.
A pair of nesting hornbills will establish a breeding territory, walking with a slow gait and lowered head around its perimeter. They build a nest in a hollow branch or cavity within a cliff face. After mating, the female will enter the nest and the pair will work together to seal the entrance, using nesting materials and their own feces to cement the gap closed, leaving only a small space through which the male will pass the female food. The female hornbill will also molt her flight and tail feathers to line the nest. The female incubates the 2-3 eggs for 25 days and feeds the young for the first three weeks of life by regurgitating the food brought to her by the male. At this time, she leaves the nest and assists the male in bringing food back to the brood. The young fledge after around 45 days.