Together with Owls, I think Hornbills would be the other most spectacular bird species in India! And like the Owls, they have such an expressive look too, probably because of their eye lashes!
Stories around Hornbills were heard everywhere I visited. Most places it is highly revered as a bird and with folk lores about misfortune falling on those who hurt Hornbills. In Assam, recently a person who killed a female Pied Hornbill lost his mental balance after that; and more sadly the male Hornbill roams around lonely and by himself. Similarly a Narcondam Hornbill which was taken into shelter to provide some health care escaped from captivity in Port Blair and then roams around all by itself, not knowing the way back to the island where its large family resides.
My story around the Hornbills truly started about a year ago when I began my search for the 3 difficult ones that were left. All these 3 hornbills tested my physical, mental, emotional, influencing skills and resources to the maximum! And taught me about second chances in life…
I had earlier posted about my search for Wreathed Hornbill when I had to trek 12 km for the bird, came back late at night without finding it and then next early morning doing the same trek again and finding it after some last minute drama with the intervention of fate!
Then was the Narcondam Hornbill just a couple of weeks ago. Had planned for a year and then in last week before the trip, everything was changed and meant that I would have to cancel my trip! Not willing to give up, I pulled all my convincing and liasoning skills to make a dramatic turnaround for the trip to finally happen around the original dates planned.
Fate again came to my rescue as a reward for all my efforts. I have a paranoia about water (only thing that scares me) and I knew about the choppy waters while reaching the last mile of Narcondam island - on a small rubber boat which was hardly one foot above those rolling, menacing waves of the sea! Turned out to be one of the relatively calmest seas in quite some time that afternoon!
Then came the Brown Hornbill. Had searched for it last year at Dehing Patkai and then at Namdapha. Was not able to find. This month I came back to Dehing for a short two days visit anticipating a quick “shoot and scoot”! Bad news started flowing in soon thereafter. The Hornbill had changed its nesting site to another location, deep in forest. It had been raining incessantly. I had not got my proper trekking shoes. All this combined turned almost fatal for me when I started the climb on the steep red mud slopes.
I was skidding like those tyres on snow. Could not get a grip and started panicking. A fall on one side of slope would have been bad. If those bamboo sticks I tried to hold in desperation gave way, it could have cut through me. I did fall. And I am a heavy guy. I clutched to something in desperation and had a deep ugly cut in my hand with blood oozing everywhere. I was scared for a rare moment in the hills (water is another matter as I mentioned above!). However decided to press on upwards. In some parts further on the way, it was stupidly risky! Somehow reached the place and started the wait for the male to come to feed its partner. It did not arrive! I had to return with a severely injured hand and an even more injured heart! Oh and the return journey taught me all the manoeuvres of a mountain climber - a clumsy one albeit!
Had to go a hospital about an hour away, got tetanus shots and choice between stitches or dressing. I chose the latter. I was ready to go up the next morning again. However this time my family emotionally blackmailed me not to repeat my misadventure and folly. I relented, and wisely so. Such bravado is pointless. Selfish to an extent. I did not climb this time but with a bandaged hand searched the forest from the normal path within the core area of the forest. First day no luck. Second day just before leaving, fate came to rescue again and we saw a flock of the Hornbills high up amongst the canopy of trees in the hills…and rest was history and the beauty of modern cameras! (PS: Do you know the name of the guest house I was staying during this trip? Hornbill! 😌)
I cannot end without the reason for my most special admiration for this species. It is their unique “self imprisonment” nesting where the females almost seal themselves in a tree hollow and are entirely dependent on the males bringing food to them from time to time during the day. God forbid, if something happens to the males, then the fate of the females and chicks are doomed. Interestingly, at least for the Brown Hornbills we saw, the male gathers his other male friends and together they go and pick fruits and then they all go to feed this one male’s partner in the sealed nest! How amazing is that! Sadly though if this male partner dies, then his friends also abandon the male’s partner as they have their own partners to take care of! So much of emotions - it is worth making a movie on!
My final take on this whole search are 2 things. Love and sacrifice makes life beautiful and meaningful. Like these Hornbill pairs. Secondly, life is about second chances and making sure one grabs them. Fate comes to the aid of those who don’t give up. Like my search for the Hornbills.
This is a collage of all the species of Hornbills in Indian subcontinent (including the females of Narcondam and Rufous-necked which together with Wreathed Hornbill female have a different look to the males but interestingly these 3 females look quite similar). And as you will see, I wanted to photograph all of them while they were royally perched and not in flight.
Top Row to Bottom (Left to Right):
Indian Gray Hornbill (Gurgaon, Feb 22)
Oriental Pied-Hornbill (Dudhwa, Apr 23)
Rufous-necked Hornbill (F) (Latpanchar, Feb 25)
Rufous-necked Hornbill (M) (Latpanchar, Feb 25)
Great Hornbill (Kaladhungi, Apr 22)
Malabar Pied-Hornbill (Thattekad, Jan 25)
Malabar Gray Hornbill (Thattekad, Jan 25)
Wreathed Hornbill (Buxa, May 25)
Sri Lanka Gray Hornbill (Sri Lanka, Dec 22)
Narcondam Hornbill (M) (Narcondam, Mar 26)
Narcondam Hornbill (F) (Narcondam, Mar 26)
Brown Hornbill (Dehing Patkai, Apr 26)