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Papuan Hornbill(Rhyticeros plicatus)

They're more commonly known as Blyth's Hornbill. 91 cm in length, the adult male has mainly black plumage with a golden or orange-buff head, white throat and a white tail. Its irises are reddish brown, and the eye is surrounded by naked pale blue skin. The female is a smaller, mainly black bird with a white throat and tail. Both sexes have a very large horn-coloured bill and casque. Young birds of both sexes resemble the male. Adults have up to eight folds on the pale casque, depending on age, while young birds have none. 

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In flight the sound of its wings is loud and distinctive, a rushing noise that has been compared to the sound of steam escaping from a steam locomotive. It has a range of far-reaching, guttural grunting and laughing calls. Various subspecies have been described and they are from all these areas; 

  • South Moluccas

  • North Moluccas and West Papua, eastwards to the Southern Highlands and Simbu Province, Papua New Guinea

  • Eastern New Guinea, west as far as the Fly River region

  • Bismarck Archipelago

  • Bougainville and Buka Islands

  • Solomon Islands from Choiseul to Guadalcanal and Malaita

Habitat

The Papuan hornbill occurs throughout lowland forests, from sea level up to 1,200–1,500 m ASL, in the Moluccas, New Guinea, the Bismarck Archipelago, and as far east as the Solomon Islands. It is the only hornbill species native to New Guinea, and one of the largest flying birds of the region

Diet

Its diet consists mainly of fruits, especially figs, occasionally supplemented with insects and other small animals.

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Breeding

The Papuan hornbill nests in a large tree hollow in the rainforest, from at least 18 m up to 30 m above the ground. The female is restricted to the nest cavity throughout the incubation and nestling period, being largely sealed inside by plastering up the entrance with a mixture of fruit pulp and rotten wood, leaving only a narrow aperture through which the male feeds her. The clutch size is about two eggs.

Population

According to the IUCN Red List, they are classed as Least Concern(LC). The global population size has not been quantified, but the species is reported to be common in many areas of its wide range. The population is suspected to be in decline owing to ongoing habitat destruction and hunting for food.

Threats

There are currently no threats towards this species, but the main one would be deforestation. However, it is subject to hunting pressure by some tribal groups, who use its feathers in headdresses, its bill as a personal adornment, and the lower mandible as a spear point.

Conservation

There are currently no conservation actions as the species is widespread and very common.

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