The Zoo is
CLOSED
for the winter season.
Visit us when we
reopen in April 2010.

Silvery-cheeked Hornbill

Scientific Name:	Ceratogymna brevis
Range:	East Africa from Ethiopia to South Africa
Habitat:	Forests
Natural Diet:	Fruit, insects, and other bird’s eggs
Zoo Diet:	Pellet grain, fresh fruit, rice, and shredded carrot
Physical Characteristics:	These hornbills are mostly black except for a wide white stripe on the lower back. They also have a silvery-grey colored head and a large casque on the top of the beak, both of which lend to the bird’s name.
Behavior:	Silvery-cheeked hornbills usually live in pairs and sometimes roost in flocks of hundreds of individuals.
Reproduction:	Together, the male and female make an enclosed nest and only leave a hole big enough for the female to fit inside. Once the female is inside, the male patches up the hole, leaving only a small slit through which he will deliver food to the female while she incubates her eggs. Once her chicks are ready to fly, the female then breaks the mud wall and comes out of the nest with her chicks.