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Nest Cavity Characteristics and Nesting Success of Sri Lanka Grey Hornbill (Ocycerous Gingalensis) in Mihintale Sanctuary, Sri Lanka

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Nest Cavity Characteristics and Nesting Success of Sri Lanka Grey Hornbill (Ocycerous Gingalensis) in Mihintale Sanctuary, Sri Lanka NeBIO I www.nebio.in I June 2019 I 10(2): 93-98 RESEARCH ARTICLE Nest cavity characteristics and nesting success of Sri Lanka Grey Hornbill (Ocycerous gingalensis) in Mihintale Sanctuary, Sri Lanka Wijerathne I* & Wickramasinghe S** Department of Biological sciences, Faculty of Applied sciences, Rajarata University Mihinthale, Sri Lanka Email: *[email protected], **[email protected] ABSTRACT Hornbills (Bucerotidae) are one of the most recognizable groups of birds in the Old World tropics which utilize the tree cavities for their nesting. The characteristics of trees used for nesting and nest holes were documented for Sri Lanka Grey Hornbills in Mihintale Sanctuary within 5 breeding seasons during 2013-2017 periods. Eleven SLGH nest cavities in the trunks of 6 species belong to 4 families of living trees were identified within 4km2 area which definitely used by SLGH within the breeding cycle. Nesting started early in March and ended in late June. Female was sealed in the nest cavity during breeding period. Nest sealing materials used include the hornbill’s own feces, mud, cattle dung and tree bark. All three nest formations were identified. The majority (71%) of nests were in Manilkara hexandra (Sapotaceae Family) trees. All nests were located at the edge of the forest very much closer to the human habitation. These revealed that the nesting of the SLGH in suburb areas is not good sign since it potentially indicates the loss of adequate breeding conditions in the forest. Conservation of SLGH depends on protection of trees and tree cavities as an important ecological niche. KEYWORDS: Sri Lanka Grey hornbill, Nest cavities, Conservation, Breeding, Dry zone. Introduction 2009). Primary cavity breeders are the responsible species for the Nest is defining as the structure aid the laying eggs, incubation of excavating cavities which secondarily used by hornbills for laying the eggs and the survival of the young (Collins, 1964). Nest eggs (Dudley, 2003). Some of the nest cavities are formed by location and architecture is strongly influenced by local natural processes, but hornbill species often compete among topography and other abiotic factors. Nest building behavior can themselves (Chalermpongse, 1985; Poonswad et al. 1987; provide interesting clues to evolutionary history and ecology of Poonswad, 1995; Chuailua et al. 1998 and Poonswad et al. 2000; species (Collias, 1986). Structure of the nest is beneficiary to Kemp, 1995). reduce predation primarily also thermal protection in secondarily. Yet, the relative roles of these factors on nest structures remain There are 61 species of Hornbill species recorded in the world largely unexplored (Martin, 2016; Gross & MacMillan,1981; (Gonzales, 2013) out of them Sri Lanka has only two species of Collias & Collias,1984; Magnusson & Hero,1991; Madsen & hornbills. It was recorded that most of the hornbill species Shine,1999; Mehlman & Doran, 2002; Angilletta, Sears & Pringle, returning to the previous cavity year by year for breeding (Kemp, Received 4 February 2019 I Accepted 28 May 2019 I Published online 10 June 2019 Citation: Wijerathne I and Wickramasinghe S. 2019. Nest cavity characteristics and nesting success of Sri Lanka Grey Hornbill (Ocycerous gingalensis) in Mihintale Sanctuary, Sri Lanka. NeBIO 10(2): 93-94 Acknowledgements We would like to offer our gratitude to Dr.Sampath Senevirathne for his valuable comments and advices, Ravindra Jayaratne and Krishantha Sameera for assistant of capturing birds. Our special thanks goes to Krishan, Kaushalya, Sandunika, Pavithra, Haritha, Samesh, Rajitha, Deshan, Pavithra and all the other students who participated as field assistants throughout the project. We also would like to acknowledge all the Laboratory staff of RUSL and those who support the project. Copyright © Wijerathne and Wickramasinghe. 2019. NECEER, Imphal allows unrestricted use, reproduction, and distribution of this article in any medium by adequate credit to the author(s) and the source of publication. NeBIO, An International Journal of Environment and Biodiversity Official publication of North East Centre for Environmental Education (NECEER), Imphal I ISSN 2278-2281 (Online), 0976-3597 (Print) I www.nebio.in Wijerathne & Wickramasinghe » Nest cavity characteristics and nesting success of Sri Lanka Grey Hornbill NeBIO 10(2): 93-98 Figure 1. Study area of the Mihintale sanctuary. Mihintale Sanctuary which covers up both forested and semi urban land use patterns belongs to Mihintale Divisional Secretariat where located at Anuradhapura District of North Central Province of Sri Lanka. 1978). In prisoning female inside the tree cavity until the end of searched for active territorial pairs of SLGH (courtship, calling, breeding season is a unique feature comparing to other birds. mating, and intraspecific fights) in semi urbanized area as well as forested area within Mihintale sanctuary. Out of 33 of endemic species of birds on Sri Lanka, (Ocycerous gingalensis) grey hornbill (Shaw 1811) is an endemic bird (Legge, The best way to locate nesting cavities of any hornbill territorial 1880; Warakagoda, 2009) common in the forested areas of low pairs is following a foraging male or identifying midden samples country dry zone as well as wet zone (Henry, 1998). The genus under nesting cavities. Though the Hornbills are cavity breeders, Ocycerous restricted to the Indian sub-continent (Kemp, 1993). It it’s hard to observe inside of nest without cameras. So Mayfield often inhabits strands of tall trees close to river beds in more method was used to observe bird behavior from the outside of the remote areas of the low country (Zylva, 2000; Kotagama, 2011). cavity.(Mayfield, 1961; Johnson, 1980). Detailed observations Normally, breeding cycle starts mid of March (Wijerathne and from each nest site were used for determining the nesting stage Wickramasinghe, 2018) but some breeding records on December (Dudley, 2003). All the selected active SLGH nest cavities were to February by Samaraweera in 1987.The nesting season, the observed from the outside throughout the nesting period. Also selective tree species they use for nesting and the architecture of subsequent food delivery by male to female and juveniles were the cavity are the fundamental questions about the SLGH which recorded and frequencies were calculated. Fledging rates were are still unsolved in literature. assessed by direct observation at outside the nest cavity until the nestlings comes out of the nest. Nearly 350 man hours were spent Materials and methods near the active nest cavities three or two days per week between Study area 0600hrs-1800hrs of day time for one nesting period. The study was conducted in Mihintale sanctuary where content dry mixed evergreen forest from 2013-2017. Study area is 4 km2 When the nestlings left out from the cavity, all characteristics and and comprised both forested and human settlement areas (Fig 1). measurements of the cavities were recorded such as depth, From the end of February until first half of June, we intensively opening diameters, inner width and inner height. Tree heights, 94 ISSN 2278-2281 (Online), 0976-3597 (Print) I www.nebio.in Wijerathne & Wickramasinghe » Nest cavity characteristics and nesting success of Sri Lanka Grey Hornbill NeBIO 10(2): 93-98 nest heights DBH (Diameter Breast Height) like ecological (36%). Hornbills choose the cavities that would be bigger cavities parameters (Table 1) were used to calculate tree preference with larger entrances, relative to their body size, when compared (Santhoskumar, 2016). to other species (Fig 6). After the female enters to the nest cavity they cover up the cavity opening by using material prepared by Table 1. Summary of structural data of nest cavities of SLGH. them. It is believed that sealing the nest is a form of predator Outer structural parameters, Inner structural parameters of the defense and that hornbills usually use the narrowest entrances cavities and the nest tree dimensions. possible to reduce time spent sealing (Poonswad, 1995). Although Variables Mean ±SD Range the literature says that hornbills usually seal the nest cavities by Tree dbh (cm) 76.00 ± 19.56 93cm-43 using specially prepared material but within this study period in (diameter at breast height) Mihintale sanctuary only two nest cavity openings sealed (Fig 5) Tree height (m) 12.61 ± 2.22 16.45m-10 by the SLGH out of observed hornbill nest cavities. It emphasizes Nest height (m) 4.41 ± 2.06 7.8m-1.8 that all Sri Lankan hornbills pairs do not always seal the nest Depth of the nest (cm) 41.0 ± 0.1 42cm-30 opening and that depends on the location of the nest. If sealed, Diameter of the opening (cm) 22.5 ± 0.1 24.5cm-15.5 the female comes out by breaking the entrance wall before the Nest entrance width (cm) 31.2 ± 0.1 34.5cm-23.5 chicks comes out of the nest cavity. The exact function of the cavity wall was not define yet and the use of it could be avoid Results and discussion predators from the nestling or might be as a wall of protection to According to study records, Sri Lankan Grey hornbill starts nesting the nestlings from rain or any other causes. Some of the hornbill at February and normally nesting period ends in June. Chicks of species tend to choose their nesting sites most near the urban observed nests were fledged between May and June.The entire habitat with full of noisy and busy environment (Barnwell & Lim breeding cycle normally includes pre laying, laying, incubating and 2009). According to the observations in this study, even noisy, nesting periods. Present study did not attempt to determine all busy urban environments seemed not consider as a barriers to over the life cycle of this bird. The entire nesting period of SLGH nest site selection and for the successful breeding because most for the incubation, hatching and chicks come out within 104±0.65 of the nesting sites of Sri Lanka Grey Hornbill were located next days respectively (Wijerathne and Wickramasinghe, 2018).
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