In a talk to update the public on the Singapore Hornbill Project on 22nd May 2008, Marc Cremades, who initiated the project together with Prof Ng Soon Chye, announced that the population of the Oriental Pied Hornbill (Anthracoceros albirostris) in Singapore has seen a sudden explosion.

These large and impressive birds have been slowly increasing in number over the last decade or so. When the project was initiated in 2006, the hornbill population was below 30 birds, with about 20 in Pulau Ubin.

The use of nesting boxes in the offshore island of Pulau Ubin has contributed to this sudden increase in population. The birds have been accepting these nesting boxes and using them to breed, and to raise a number of chicks successfully (top).

According to Marc, there are at least seven breeding pairs in Ubin and about 19 juveniles around. He estimates that the total population for Singapore is around 50.

Soon, these artificial nesting boxes will be tried on mainland Singapore. And hopefully, more Singaporeans will get a see these large and impressive birds.

The Bird Ecology Study Group is proud to be associated with the Singapore Hornbill Project.

The above image is courtesy of the National Parks Board, Singapore.

Ben drew my attention to the 2004 special issue of the journal, Bird Conservation International. This special issue, dedicated to the conservation of hornbills, carries some of the many papers read at the Third International Hornbill Workshop held in Phuket, Thailand in 2001.

Ben e-mailed me, “I just came across a bit of interesting trivia from an introduction page of a special supplement of Bird Conservation International dedicated to the conservation of hornbills… Dec 2004. Vol 14 Supplement S1:S3. The excerpt that caught my attention was this:

“’This volume is dedicated to the memory of Elizabeth Glassco Hudson (1956– 2002). One of Lis’ most powerful and exhilarating experiences was in Singapore, in 1994, when a Great Indian Hornbill (Buceros bicornis) flew just over her head, making that sound that only hornbill wings can make. She stood in that bird’s wake, mesmerized.’

“Interesting, isn’t it? Considering that it is one of our non-native birds that had a mesmerizing effect on a visitor. The Great Indian Hornbill is a synonym for the Great Hornbill.”

The Great Hornbill, also known as the Great Indian Hornbill, is native to Sumatra, Peninsular Malaysia and northwards to the southern Himalayas.

Great Hornbills are escapees in Singapore. It was the fashion to keep such birds once and there were probably a number of smuggled birds in Singapore then. A few escaped, or were they released, for one reason or another? Anyway, from the above account, at least one bird was around as far back as 1994.

A pair of Great died in the island of Sentosa many years ago, when poison was commonly used to control the rat population there. A bird was also sighted in the Singapore Botanic Gardens, checking out a nesting hole

Currently, only a single Great Hornbill remains, causing much excitement among the urban population when it visits their homes - see here: 1, 2 and 3.

In 2006 a Great and a Rhinoceros (B. rhinoceros), both female, were seen in Eng Neo prospecting a nesting hole in an old tree - see here: 1, 2, 3 and 4.

Image of Great Hornbill at Eng Neo by YC.

February is the beginning of the breeding season and at Changi the Oriental Pied Hornbills (Anthracoceros albirostris) are busy prospecting potential nesting cavities again. This is exactly one year after two failed nesting in Changi.

Chan Yoke Meng encountered a male hornbill picking fruits of the MacArthur Palm (Ptychosperma macarthurii) (above) to subsequently place them inside a tree cavity to induce the female to enter it.

An earlier account shows a female hornbill entering the nest cavity of the Tanimbar Corella (Cacatua goffini).

One of the sites inspected by a pair is the same cavity in an angsana tree (Pterocarpus indicus) by the main road that a female sealed herself in last year. The male was seen examining the cavity as well as another nearby. The female was even seen entering the cavity, to emerge about five minutes later.

This time around, it would be interesting to see whether they are successful in raising chicks. If so, the population on mainland Changi would see an increase from the current two pairs.

Image of hornbill eating palm fruits by Chan Yoke Meng.

“The pair of Oriental Pied Hornbills (Anthracoceros albirostris) that have been in and around Changi Village for 2-3 years now, have tried unsuccessfully to nest a few times (see Related Posts, below).

“Since last year, I have seen the pair at the main Red-breasted Parakeet (Psittacula alexandri) and Tanimbar Corella (Cacatua goffini) nesting area along the main road, on a few occasions. Each time, the cockatoos would be nowhere to be seen and the parakeets would be screaming up a storm.

“The female has tried to steal the cockatoos nest hole but no matter how hard she tried, she could not quite fit. A few times, possibly in frustration or just to stake her claim, she would place her whole body over the nest hole. As I have seen the cockatoo in that hole at other times, I could never tell if one was stuck in there during efforts.

“On January 30th, when Melanie Votaw and I visited the colony, we were surprised to find the female hornbill in the nest hole, with only her head and neck sticking out (top). We observed her for a while and Melanie managed some photos. She was rubbing her bill around the edge of the hole. The edge looked damp and brown as a result and I wondered whether she was actually using her own droppings.

“The hole still looked too small for her and was certainly much smaller and rounded compared to the normal slits that these birds choose. She would not really need to seal herself in very much, if she successfully laid eggs. The male was seen, for a short while, on a nearby branch.

“On the next Angsana tree (Pterocarpus indicus), both the Tanimbar Corella and Red-breasted Parakeet were at their own nest holes, while a Javan Myna (Acridotheres javanicus) seemed to be lining the bough of the tree as well (above). Nesting galore!

“While the population of wild Oriental Pied Hornbills at nearby Ubin is now at 22+ birds, there are limited nesting sites due to the lack of sufficient large trees and the even smaller number of suitably sized nest holes. This situation is far worse on mainland Singapore, especially away from the Central Nature Reserves.

“Nesting boxes may be the answer and this is being tried out at Pulau Ubin. If this proves successful, more boxes can be set up at Changi and other eastern nature sites, in the hope that the hornbills will successfully colonise from Ubin.”

Image of hornbill by Melanie Votaw, that of corella-parakeet by Chan Yoke Meng.

Angie Ng was at the offshore island of Pulau Ubin on the evening (1815 hours) of 22nd January 2008 when she saw an unusual spectacle.

“The Oriental Pied Hornbills (Anthracoceros albirostris) had gathered below the jetty beside the police post at 
Ubin last evening (left). 

Managed to capture (of the total 15) only 10 on the rocks and 3 on the 
railing.
 Sorry, pics of poor quality; am sending my other camera for repair!

 Cheers for a wonderful day!”

These hornbills usually congregate high up on trees, moving to the ground to catch prey or collect lumps of mud during the nesting season. For them to gather on the beach in such number - can it be that there is food on the beach and the birds are scavenging there?

In Pangkor Island, Malaysia, these hornbills are doing just that - residents feed them with leftover food to attract them as a tourist attraction.

However, our bird specialist R Subaraj has this to say: “Possible but unlikely as the cleaners regularly remove all rubbish from there. Unless they were finding food brought in by the tide. Why so late then (low tide?)… just before roosting. They do probably gather and roost communally as I have seen a flock of 19 birds in a single flock at dawn… also at the police post. They possibly roost somewhere near there.”

When queried further, Angie has this to add; “We were on the jetty waiting to return to Changi when we saw the wave of hornbills descending on the rocks. They didn’t show signs of foraging; after a minute or so they flew off to the coconut (Cocos nucifera) and Sea Almond (Terminalia catappa) trees; then they came back to the rocks and a few to the railing. A few guides went closer to observe them and took a count, but the hornbills just moved about, flew to the trees and congregated on the beach again. We left the jetty a while later.”

Well, this may be a pre-roosting spot…

Image by Angie Ng.