Wrinkled Hornbill
Encyclopedia
The Wrinkled Hornbill or Sunda Wrinkled Hornbill (Aceros corrugatus) is a medium-large hornbill
which is found in forest in the Thai-Malay Peninsula, Sumatra
and Borneo
. It has sometimes been placed in the genus
Rhyticeros
together with most other species generally placed in Aceros
.
The Wrinkled Hornbill is around 70 cm long, and has a very large bill that is fused to the skull
. It has mainly black
plumage
, a blue eye-ring, and a broadly white or rufous-tipped tail. The male and female have different head and bill pattern
s. Males have bright yellow feathers on the auriculars, cheeks, throat, neck-sides and chest, but these areas are black in the female, except for the blue throat. The bill of the male is yellow with a red base and casque, and a brownish basal half of the lower mandible. The bill and casque of the female is almost entirely yellow.
This is a forest
species
and eats mainly fruit
, such as fig
s, although it will also eat small animal
s such as frog
s and insect
s. Wrinkled Hornbills do not drink, but get the water
they need from their food. Their call is a harsh "Kak-kak," or a deep "Row-wow" which can be heard for miles.
These birds are monogamous and remain in a pair for life. They use holes found in tree
s for nest
s, and the female will plaster over the entrance with mud
and dropping
s, leaving a nesting mother and her chicks only a small hole, too small for them to exit. They are fed exclusively by the male, who regurgitate
s food
for them. After several months, when the chicks are ready, the female will break out of her nest.
Wrinkled Hornbills were first bred in captivity
in 1988.
Hornbill
Hornbills are a family of bird found in tropical and subtropical Africa, Asia and Melanesia. They are characterized by a long, down-curved bill which is frequently brightly-colored and sometimes has a casque on the upper mandible. Both the common English and the scientific name of the family...
which is found in forest in the Thai-Malay Peninsula, Sumatra
Sumatra
Sumatra is an island in western Indonesia, westernmost of the Sunda Islands. It is the largest island entirely in Indonesia , and the sixth largest island in the world at 473,481 km2 with a population of 50,365,538...
and Borneo
Borneo
Borneo is the third largest island in the world and is located north of Java Island, Indonesia, at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia....
. It has sometimes been placed in the genus
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
Rhyticeros
Rhyticeros
Rhyticeros is a genus of medium to large hornbills found in forests from south-east Asia to the Solomons. They are sometimes included in the genus Aceros...
together with most other species generally placed in Aceros
Aceros
Aceros is a genus of large south-east Asian hornbills . This genus sometimes includes all species generally placed in the genus Rhyticeros. Alternatively, Aceros has been considered monotypic, only including the Rufous-necked Hornbill, in which case all of the remaining are moved to the Rhyticeros...
.
The Wrinkled Hornbill is around 70 cm long, and has a very large bill that is fused to the skull
Skull
The skull is a bony structure in the head of many animals that supports the structures of the face and forms a cavity for the brain.The skull is composed of two parts: the cranium and the mandible. A skull without a mandible is only a cranium. Animals that have skulls are called craniates...
. It has mainly black
Black
Black is the color of objects that do not emit or reflect light in any part of the visible spectrum; they absorb all such frequencies of light...
plumage
Plumage
Plumage refers both to the layer of feathers that cover a bird and the pattern, colour, and arrangement of those feathers. The pattern and colours of plumage vary between species and subspecies and can also vary between different age classes, sexes, and season. Within species there can also be a...
, a blue eye-ring, and a broadly white or rufous-tipped tail. The male and female have different head and bill pattern
Pattern
A pattern, from the French patron, is a type of theme of recurring events or objects, sometimes referred to as elements of a set of objects.These elements repeat in a predictable manner...
s. Males have bright yellow feathers on the auriculars, cheeks, throat, neck-sides and chest, but these areas are black in the female, except for the blue throat. The bill of the male is yellow with a red base and casque, and a brownish basal half of the lower mandible. The bill and casque of the female is almost entirely yellow.
Forest
A forest, also referred to as a wood or the woods, is an area with a high density of trees. As with cities, depending where you are in the world, what is considered a forest may vary significantly in size and have various classification according to how and what of the forest is composed...
species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
and eats mainly fruit
Fruit
In broad terms, a fruit is a structure of a plant that contains its seeds.The term has different meanings dependent on context. In non-technical usage, such as food preparation, fruit normally means the fleshy seed-associated structures of certain plants that are sweet and edible in the raw state,...
, such as fig
Ficus
Ficus is a genus of about 850 species of woody trees, shrubs, vines, epiphytes, and hemiepiphyte in the family Moraceae. Collectively known as fig trees or figs, they are native throughout the tropics with a few species extending into the semi-warm temperate zone. The Common Fig Ficus is a genus of...
s, although it will also eat small animal
Animal
Animals are a major group of multicellular, eukaryotic organisms of the kingdom Animalia or Metazoa. Their body plan eventually becomes fixed as they develop, although some undergo a process of metamorphosis later on in their life. Most animals are motile, meaning they can move spontaneously and...
s such as frog
Frog
Frogs are amphibians in the order Anura , formerly referred to as Salientia . Most frogs are characterized by a short body, webbed digits , protruding eyes and the absence of a tail...
s and insect
Insect
Insects are a class of living creatures within the arthropods that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae...
s. Wrinkled Hornbills do not drink, but get the water
Water
Water is a chemical substance with the chemical formula H2O. A water molecule contains one oxygen and two hydrogen atoms connected by covalent bonds. Water is a liquid at ambient conditions, but it often co-exists on Earth with its solid state, ice, and gaseous state . Water also exists in a...
they need from their food. Their call is a harsh "Kak-kak," or a deep "Row-wow" which can be heard for miles.
These birds are monogamous and remain in a pair for life. They use holes found in tree
Tree
A tree is a perennial woody plant. It is most often defined as a woody plant that has many secondary branches supported clear of the ground on a single main stem or trunk with clear apical dominance. A minimum height specification at maturity is cited by some authors, varying from 3 m to...
s for nest
Bird nest
A bird nest is the spot in which a bird lays and incubates its eggs and raises its young. Although the term popularly refers to a specific structure made by the bird itself—such as the grassy cup nest of the American Robin or Eurasian Blackbird, or the elaborately woven hanging nest of the...
s, and the female will plaster over the entrance with mud
Mud
Mud is a mixture of water and some combination of soil, silt, and clay. Ancient mud deposits harden over geological time to form sedimentary rock such as shale or mudstone . When geological deposits of mud are formed in estuaries the resultant layers are termed bay muds...
and dropping
Feces
Feces, faeces, or fæces is a waste product from an animal's digestive tract expelled through the anus or cloaca during defecation.-Etymology:...
s, leaving a nesting mother and her chicks only a small hole, too small for them to exit. They are fed exclusively by the male, who regurgitate
Regurgitation (digestion)
Regurgitation is the expulsion of material from the mouth, pharynx, or esophagus, usually characterized by the presence of undigested food or blood.Regurgitation is used by a number of species to feed their young...
s food
Food
Food is any substance consumed to provide nutritional support for the body. It is usually of plant or animal origin, and contains essential nutrients, such as carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins, or minerals...
for them. After several months, when the chicks are ready, the female will break out of her nest.
Wrinkled Hornbills were first bred in captivity
Captivity (animal)
Animals that live under human care are in captivity. Captivity can be used as a generalizing term to describe the keeping of either domesticated animals or wild animals. This may include for example farms, private homes and zoos...
in 1988.