KASAMBE ET AL.: Indian Grey Hornbill 165 Circumorbital skin- and eye-colour of young Indian Grey Hornbills Ocyceros birostris Raju Kasambe, Pravin Charde, J. L. Tarar & Anil Pimplapure Kasambe, R., Charde, P., Tarar, J. L., & Pimplapure, A., 2012. Circumorbital skin- and eye-colour of young Indian Grey Hornbills Ocyceros birostris. Indian BIRDS 7 (6): 165. Raju Kasambe, B-205, Trimurti Apts., Tilak Nagar, Dombivli (E), Distt Thane, Maharashtra 421201, India. E-mail: [email protected]. Corresponding author. [RK] Pravin Charde, Principal, Sevadal Mahila Mahavidyalaya and Research Academy, Umred Road, Sakkardara, Nagpur 440009, Maharashtra, India. Manuscript received on 14 October 2010. e conducted a study of the ecology and breeding of an adult female as rich dark orange and, in the same note, behaviour of Indian Grey Hornbills Ocyceros birostris in mentioned that its irides were dark brown. Thus, this is the first WNagpur, central India, during 2007–2008, 2008–2009, description of the circumorbital skin colour of young Indian Grey and 2009–2010. Here we describe, for the first time, the colour Hornbills. The circumorbital skin colour of the young of Indian of the eye and circumorbital skin of young Indian Grey Hornbills. Grey Hornbill is not described in published literature (Ali & Ripley On 4 July 2008, at 0830 hrs we photographed a sunning 1983; Kemp 1995; Pittie 2003). During the study period we fledgling Indian Grey Hornbill in Maharajbagh Garden at Nagpur. noted the circumorbital skin colour of different fledglings on On 28 June 2009 a fledgling was rescued from marauding House several occasions. Crows Corvus splendens at Nagpur by Mr Minitesh Tapre, and was brought to the residence of the first author (RK) (Fig. 1). The Acknowledgements fledgling had an injury and was in distress. It was treated, fed, and released into the wild on 3 July 2009. The adult hornbills were Thanks to Dr S. S. Bawaskar, Officer-in-charge of Maharajbag Zoo, Nagpur for his help during the study. Thanks to Mr Gopal Thosar, Honourary Wildlife Warden, then seen feeding this fledgling in the afternoon. In the evening, Nagpur district, Aditya Joshi, Koustubh Thomare (naturalists), Minitesh Tapre the fledgling flew with the adult hornbills. Our descriptions of (a nature lover), and Tarun Balpande for their kind help in rehabilitation of the bare skin and iris colours are from these two birds and others hornbill fledgling. observed in the wild. The circumorbital skin colour of these two fledglings was dull References orange. The eye colour was dark brown to black. According to Ali & Ripley (1983) in adult Indian Grey Hornbills the iris is brownish Ali, S., & Ripley, S. D., 1983. Handbook of the birds of India and Pakistan together with orange to red in male, and brown in female. According to Kemp those of Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka. Compact ed. Pp. i–xlii, pp. 1–737, 56 ll. Delhi: Oxford University Press. (1995) the bare circum-orbital skin colour of the adult male is lead Kemp, A., 1995. The Hornbills. Bucerotiformes. Pp. i–xvi, 1–302. Oxford: Oxford Uni- coloured. Eyes are red-brown to orange. The bare circumorbital versity Press. skin colour is lead black in the male (Ali & Ripley 1983; Kemp Pittie, A., 2003. A note on the circumorbital skin colour of Indian Grey Hornbill Ocyceros 1995). Pittie (2003) first described the circumorbital skin colour birostris. J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 100 (1): 141–142. Photo: Aditya Joshi Fig. 1. A rescued young Indian Grey Hornbill Ocyceros birostris fledgling at Nagpur, central India..