First Captive Breeding of the Black Hornbill at Jurong Birdpark

Anthracoceros m. malayanus

by Md. Saad and Asnul Rasip Jurong Birdpark, Jalan Ahmad Ibrakim, Singapore

(f) ...co General Description and s0l11etil11eS there can also be a 'S co The Black Hornbill (Anthracoceros white or grayish streak above the eye. '0 >­ nt. 1nalayan,us) is distributed through­ The outer four renliges at the tail are (f) ~ out 1110~t of southeast Asia, froll1 broadly tipped with white. The color :; o () SU111atra east to Borneo and north to of the bare skin around the eye is blu­ o <5 Southern Peninsular Thailand. They ish black with a patch of yellow ...c a.. are found in low land areas stretching beneath. The casque is high and pro­ up to an altitude of 4,000 feet. jects forward. Seen frOl1l the side, the In 1110St hornbill species, sexes can outline of the casque is convex. The be differentiated by the size of bill and bill and casque are white in color. casque; SOlne by the color of the iris. The general plul11age of the adult The general plulnage of the adult fenlale is sill1ilar to the I11ale except for ll1ale is glossy black with a blue green S0111e features. The color of the eyes is sheen. The color of the eyes is brown orange and the color of the bare skin

77.7is./enla/e and her ~I,;ix-nlon/h-o/dchicl...'? stayed close together in this u)el/-planted aviary.

around the eye including the patch beneath the eye is pinkish. The casque is ll1uch s111aller and has a nearly straight frontal edge. Both the bill and casque are blackish ill color. History ofBirds 7he s1naller casque and darker color indicate that this Black~ Hornbill is a.(enIale. Six Black Hornbills (two tnale and four fenlale) were introduced to one avialy of the Exhibit onJuly 25, 1990. On Novenlber 29, 1990, one Inale was found dead (attacked by the d0111inant 111ale). On Novenlber 7, 1990, one fell1ale was transferred to the sick bay (weak). On Novel11ber 5, 1991, two females were transferred to the transit aviary because the pair was showing signs of aggression. One pair was left (the breeding pair). Aviary There are 21 cOlllpartlllents in the hornbill exhibit. Arranged in two rows, c0l11prising of nine compart­ 111ents in the front row and 10 C0111­ Black Hornbi1l1nale. 7his species isjound in Borneo and Stunatra. paltnlents at the rear with two sl1laller

afa WATCH13IRD 57 o(/J ..c:: compartments sited apart. The Black :; Hornbill is housed on the left most o'" >­ compartment of the row at the rear. (/J ~ The dimensions are 6m x 12m x 10m :; a u (20' x 40' x33'). The right side of the a 15 aviary is covered with a green screen ..c:: to preclude the birds from seeing the Cl. neighboring birds (visual isolation), due to their aggressive behavior. A pond is provided in the aviary for drinking and bathing purposes.

Aviary Vegetation Both sides of the aviary are planted with Fish-tail Palm (Caryota mitis) and MacArthur Palm (Ptycosprema mac­ arthuri) to cover the green screen. Old World Heliconias are planted near the pond area and an Indian Coral Tree (Erythrina glauca) at the center of the aviary provides good shade for these Hornbills. The hornbill aviary is arranged in two rows containing 2] compartments. The Black Hornbills are housed in thefar leftflight. Normal Diet Mixed fruits (diced bananas and papaya) - 700g/once a day Nesting material JanualY 27, 1992 -Fourth and fifth Bread mixed with minced meat and In early December 1991, earth and eggs were noticed. hard boiled eggs - lOOg/once a day mud were placed inside all the nesting The eggs were white in color and Crickets - 20/twice a week boxes. oval in shape. We cannot give any Mealworms - 40g/twice a week. details on the dimension of the eggs, Maintenance as we had to avoid causing any stress Nest Box Plants were left overgrown and the to the female. Rectangular in shape (Measurement pond was cleaned with chlorox We discovered that the female in inches). See Diagram below. (sodium hypochloride solution) every stalted to molt only after she had laid two days. Minimum time was spent the fifth egg. Her feathers were used ~ ~ inside the aviary to avoid disturbance to cushion the clutch. to the female, since this was their first ~ breeding attempt. Incubation Period (Diet) Observation Mixed fruits (diced bananas and On January 12, 1992, we noticed papaya) - 700g/once a day. that the female had started covering Bread mixed with minced meat and the nest entrance. The female com­ hard boiled egg - 100g/once a day. Crickets - 20 ps/twice a week. 3~ pleted the process three days later. White mice - 4 ps/three times a Sealage week. ~ Mealworms - 40g/twice a week. ~ The female sealed the entrance with a:::::J f!!!f?' a mixture of mud and earth which had During the incubation period, the .. • I~ been put inside the nest box earlier. male usually preferred bread mixed jq This seal was two inches thick at the with minced meat, crickets and mice, Metal brackets are fixed to the rear edges (ie, the same thickness as the which the male later regurgitated to and below to support the nest box side walls of the nest box), tapering to the female. Later, the mixed fruits which hangs from the aviary's lateral one half inch at the centre of the were consumed. In the afternoon, the metal beam. There are observation entrance. At the side of the entrance, male was seen approaching the nest­ windows on both sides of the box. the wall is two inches thick. The ing location and feeding the female in 1. Depth of the nest entrance is two female completed the process before response to the female's soft chatter­ inches. egg-laying. ing noise. The male ended up perch­ 2. The height of the nesting box January 18, 1992 -First egg was ing in the hade and preening. The from the ground is eight feet. noticed. incubation period was 26 days. 3. The nesting box is constructed January 25, 1992 - Second egg out of plywood (one half inch thick). noticed. Hatching 4. Generally, the nesting box is January 26, 1992 - Third egg The first young was hatched on Feb­ faced towards the west. noticed. ruary 13, 1992, the second on Febru

58 MarchiApril]995 ary 21, 1992, the third on February 24, 1992, the fourth on February 27, 1992, (but discovered dead on February 29, The Conservation of 1992). The fifth egg was not fertile. By this time, it was possible to check the female and the young every three days. Difficulties were encountered Hombills in Captivity on checking the nest box because whenever we opened the observation By Wendy Worth window, the female would attack us. San Antonio, Texas Fledging On April 20, 1992 at 08:00 hrs, the utmost importance. female broke open the sealed "V'hile~layedcaptive propagation has Hornbills have served humankind entrance; two of the chicks then W a significant part in res­ for centuries in myth and ritual through­ emerged. Ten days later on April 30, cuing many endangered species such out southeast Asia; they bring the rain 1992 the youngest chick came out of as the California Condor, the Bali Myna for the crops in Borneo; they are the na­ the nest box. First chick came out on and the Guam Kingfisher, the sadfact is tional bird ofSarawak; and their carved day 67, second chick on day 59 and that we do not yet have sufficient casques brought good luck to Chinese third chick on day 66. knowledge to use captive propagation families for eons. And yet almost all We observed that the juvenile dif­ to rescue hornbills. Developing reli­ large Asian hornbills are now seriously fered from the adult in bill and casque able husbandry techniques should be a threatened by the logging industry (white in both sexes). The casque top priority for all of us who are inter­ which is taking away their nest sites. Re­ appeared as merely a knob at the base ested in hornbills. This is especially cent articles tell the doleful story ofthe of the calmen which was not fully true for those species found in south­ demise ofthe Malayan forests. Without developed, but the babies' plumage east Asia where they are severely the knowledge gleaned from captive was similar to that ofthe adults. threatened by massive loss ofhabitat. propagation it is quite possible that To date, there has been little input these dramatic and special birds will be­ After-hatching Diet from the private sector as to their pro­ come extinct in the wild. For the first few weeks, the amount gress towards the deVelopment ofreli­ The smallerAfrican hornbills are nei­ of mixed fruits and mixture of bread able hornbill propagation techniques. theras threatened in the wild noras diffi­ fed remained the same. The other We urgently need to get together all the cult to breed in captivity. However, their items in the diet were slowly people with knowledge on the subject breeding strategy is similar to that ofthe increased according to the develop­ and pool the information. Until now, the Asian hornbills in which the female in­ ment ofthe young. private sector andzoological institutions carcerates herself in a nest hollow for Once all the three young had have been working separately on these several months while she incubates the hatched, the diet was increased to: issues. Collaboration could produce eggs and raises the chicks. This makes crickets - 30 ps/day, more success and hopefully save some the African species excellent candidates mealworms - 40g (three times a species from extinction. for breeders to work with to develop week), Large hornbills are among the most techniques that can then be applied to white mice - 12 ps/once every two spectacular of zoo exhibits; however, more endangeredspecies. days. they do not breed well in captivity. In One factor is known, and that is that The male continued to feed the two fact, only five species ofAsian hornbills the pair bonds are very important; how­ chicks who had come out of the nest­ have bred in zoological institutions in ever, the behaviors that indicate a poten­ ing box as well as the chick still inside. the United States, the Great Hornbill be­ tially good pair are not. Another thing of On April 28, 1992, we moved the ing one ofthem. Poor nesting success known importance is the size ofthe nest male because he appeared to be makes it imperative that more effective opening as weil as the placement ofit in weak. With the absence of the male, methods ofcaptive propagation be de­ the nest log. In Thailand, Pilai Poon­ the female continued the responsibil­ veloped. swad has been studying the nesting ity of feeding the young. The young This is where the private sector can preferences of wild hornbills for ten are curretly still housed in the same make an important contribution! Here years. She has found one shape that is avialy as the female. The sexes of the are the problems on which we need to chosen most frequently. Several zoos young have been determined as one worktogether: have redone the nest openings using male and two females. (l)Incomplete knowledge ofnesting this shape and have had immediate in­ After two years of operation, the requirements. terest from pairs that had preViously main objective of breeding the horn­ (2)Incomplete knowledge ofdietary shownno nesting behavior. bills at this theme exhibit was realized. needs. Private sector breeding successes in­ This will, in turn, lead to more breed­ (3)lncomplete knowledge ofcourt­ clude endangered species like the Nene ing of other hornbill species in the ship andpair bondingcues. Goose, waterfowl in general and many ]urong Bird Park. The achievement of (4)No hand-rearing experience. pheasant species. They have also had breeding this species of hornbill is just But problem solving alone is not excellent success with psittacines, most a small step in Aviculture but a mile­ enough: communicating with other in­ recently with parrotlets and lories as stone in conservation. ~ dividuals and institutions is also ofthe good examples. By specialiZing their in-

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