Bucerotidae
hornbill
Birds
Incubation of approximately 40 days
1 or 2 eggs
Fruit, especially figs produced by the many species of Ficus trees of Asia.
Between 45 and 50 years.
The Papuan hornbill is a large bird. His name in Tok Pisin, a Creole dialect spoken in Papua New Guinea, is Kokomo. Reaching up to 91 cm in length, the adult male has black plumage with a golden or orange head, white throat and tail; while the female is smaller, black and also has white color on the tail. Both stand out for their reddish-brown eyes, surrounded by bluish skin, and have a bony helmet on the upper part of the beak, which becomes paler as the bird ages. Young specimens lack a helmet.
Due to their diet rich in Ficus figs, Hornbills spread the fertilized seeds in their feces, helping to expand the forest.
Older trees are also vital for hornbill reproduction as they use the holes in the trunk to make nests. Many times these are selectively cut in the forest, creating a problem for the hornbills who are left without a nesting place or even these birds dying if they are in the nest at the time of cutting.
