Alternative name: Ceylon Grey Hornbill
- Ocyceros gingalensis
Identification
45cm. Grey wings, black primary flight feathers, grey back, brown crown, long tail black with white sides, and the underparts are white. Sexes are similar, although the male has a cream-coloured bill, whereas the female's is black with a cream stripe. Immature birds have dark grey upperparts, a cream bill, and a tail with a white tip.
Distribution
Endemic to Sri Lanka.
Common in parts of its small range.
Taxonomy
This is a monotypic species which is sometimes considered conspecific with Malabar Grey Hornbill.
Habitat
Forests, parkland and open thorn-forest.
Behaviour
The diet includees mainly figs, occasionally it eats small rodents, reptiles and insects.
The nest is a tree hole blocked off during incubation with a cement made of mud, droppings and fruit pulp. There is only one narrow aperture, barely wide enough for the male to transfer food to the mother and the chicks. 4 white eggs are laid.
References
- Clements, JF. 2011. The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to August 2011. Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0801445019. Spreadsheet available at http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/downloadable-clements-checklist
- Del Hoyo, J, A Elliot, and J Sargatal, eds. 2001. Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 6: Mousebirds to Hornbills. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions. ISBN 978-8487334306
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Sri Lanka Grey Hornbill. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 30 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Sri_Lanka_Grey_Hornbill
