Bucorvus leadbeateri
The Southern Ground Hornbill (Bucorvus leadbeateri) is Africa's largest hornbill species, an iconic terrestrial bird inhabiting the continent's southern and eastern savannas. Adults are predominantly deep black, standing impressively at 90 to 130 cm tall with a wingspan of up to 1.8 meters and weighing between 3.5 and 6.2 kg. Their most distinctive features are the bright red facial and throat wattle, which is entirely red in males, while females exhibit a violet-blue patch on the throat, mak...
Predominantly found in savannas, grasslands, and open woodlands, they favor areas with short grasses for foraging and scattered large trees for roosting and nesting. They generally occur at low to mid-elevations.
Their diet is primarily carnivorous, consisting of a wide range of invertebrates like insects, spiders, and millipedes, as well as reptiles (snakes, lizards), amphibians, and small mammals and birds. They forage exclusively on the ground, using their formidable bills to dig and capture prey.
Southern Ground Hornbills are highly diurnal, spending the majority of their day walking across open ground in search of prey, often covering many kilometers. At night, family groups roost communally in large trees. Their foraging strategy involves methodically sweeping through vegetation, using ...
The Southern Ground Hornbill has a fragmented distribution across southern and eastern Africa, primarily south of the equator. Its breeding range extends from central Kenya and Uganda southwards through Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Botswana, Namibia, Eswatini, and into the nort...
Vulnerable
- The Southern Ground Hornbill is the largest hornbill species in the world and one of the largest flying birds native to Africa. - They are known to live for up to 60 years in captivity, making them one of the longest-lived avian species. - Their powerful bills are capable of breaking the bones ...