Indian Grey Hornbill

The Female Hornbill by Jody Hildreth A peculiar bird      With a large curved bill           Enters a prison                Of her own free will. This prison is small.      It is inside a tree.           She enters alone                Without ever a plea. She seals herself in,      But leaves a small crack           Through which she is fed                And protected from attack She sits on her eggs      For weeks all alone           In her dark prison cell                That she calls her home. Four weeks go by.      The nestlings appear.           Their chirping is heard                When father draws near. He alone feeds them      For up to three weeks.           Then the young can escape                With their hammering beaks. The family united      Is now free to roam           Far from that prison                They once called their home

A visit to Qutuab Minar....Admired the tallest minaret in the world and clicked a few birds that was a added bonus .... Sitting under the Neem tree was enjoying the gentle breeze suddently I spotted a bird clinging to the tree....Indian Grey Hornbill.

They are only a few species found in the urban landscapes that also because of few old trees still existing in the city.The Grey Hornbill is a medium sized bird with the upperparts in greyish brown in color .The horn is black or dark grey with casaque extending upto the point of the curvature in the horn .
The Hornbills nest usually  in tree hollows on tall trees. I sat down to one corner so that I could watch the bird without disturbing  it.

I kept on watching the bird and was trying to figure out what it was up to. It would fly and get back with a few berries in its beak.I went around the tree ,wondering whether the bird was feeding its chicks but could not see anything .I got back home and read about their behaviour during nesting  time . The female bird enters the nest hollow and seals the nest hole leaving a small vertical slit that the male uses to feed .No wonder i could not see the chicks the male bird was feeding the female from the narrow slit .

 Isn't that amazing behaviour ....... 

Happy Birding...