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Seems to be a 'hornbill season' starting.

So how about the crowned, one of my favourites. Mostly seen in heavily wooded parts - I have only seen them around Punda and at Parfuri.



Richard

Crowned Hornbill (Tockus alboterminatus)

Other names:
Afrikaans: Gekroonde Neushoringvoël
French: Calao couronné
German: Kronentoko
Dutch: Kuiftok

The Crowned Hornbill,. is a medium sized bird, with a length between 50 to 54 cm, and it is characterized by its white belly, black back and wings. The tips of the long tail feathers are white. The call is a loud piping series of notes: pi-pi-pi-pi-pi...

Habiat:
This is a species of denser woodland or thorn thickets. It is found on the forest edge, in coastal bush or riverine woodland. It is usually seen in pairs, singly or small parties. The flight is undulating with rapid flapping interspersed with short glides. The Crowned Hornbill spends most of the time in trees, and may gather in numbers at fruiting trees

Food:
Feeds mainly among tree foliage although they are known to hawk moths, termites and other flying insects. The diet consists of fruit, berries, insects, reptiles and small birds

Breeding:
The Crowned Hornbill nests mainly from September to January. It nests in a cavity in a tree, and in common with other hornbills, the female seals herself into the nest cavity with a mixture of faeces and nest debris. She stays there until the young are ready to leave, and sheds her wing and tail feathers during this period. The male feeds her through the slit. 4 to 5 white eggs are incubated for 25-30 days; the juveniles remain with both parents for about 8 weeks.

You do get then throughout Kruger, but like you I have only seen them at Punda and Pafuri.

On 28 January 2006 during the Kruger Birding day we saw a large group of Crowned Hornbill in the trees in the middle of the Levuhu River while having breakfast at Pafuri picnic spot. And like Snoobab and RichardH the Punda Maria/Pafuri area is also the only area in Kruger where we have seen them on our visits.

A nice shot of an adult crowned hornbill. Note the patterns in its bill. With that massive appliance it can minipulate the tiniest fragment...


Larger image

Saw 4 of them on the Crocodile River dirt road and once in the fig tree at Skukuza

Saw 2 birds on the entry road to Lake Panic on Tuesday, 22 July 2008.
All previous sightings were in the far north around Punda and Pafuri if memory serves me right.

Crowned Hornbill

Hi Guys

I saw a crowned hornbill for the first time on the Kruger Gate - Skukuza road last week.

Cheers

They are quite common in Punda Maria camp from time to time...as they seem to pass through. I have seen them all over the eastern Cape but not as yet in Addo...they must be there

Punda Maria, Mahonie Loop...seems to turn these guys up often......Also managed them further down by Skuks, and along the Oliphants River once.

I've just come back from Ponta Do Ouro, and that place was full of them!

There seems to be a pair at Skukuza
Saw them the last 3 times I have visited. Twice at camp around the shop and once at the day visitors.

Agree , at Skukuza you can find Crowned Hornbills , in fact I think it is the easiest place to spot them in Kruger.

Hi

I saw them twice, at different visits, at Olifants camp. A beautiful bird!

Confirmed. Skukuza is a good place to see them

We recently saw a group of 5 or 6 near the restaurant at Skukuza for a couple of days in a row.