The African grey hornbill is a member of the hornbill family of mainly tropical near-passerine birds found in the Old World. It is a widespread resident breeder in much of sub-Saharan Africa and the southwest of the Arabian Peninsula. The African grey hornbill has escaped or been deliberately released into Florida, USA, but there is no evidence that the population is breeding and may only persist due to continuing releases or escapes.
Region
Sub-Saharan Africa and the southwestern Arabian Peninsula
Typical Environment
It occupies open woodlands, savannas, thornveld, and dry forests, often near riverine trees and scattered acacias. The species readily uses edges of cultivation, orchards, and suburban gardens where large trees persist. It generally avoids dense rainforest and treeless deserts but can exploit arid scrub with adequate tree cover. It is frequently seen along roadsides and in mixed-species bird parties in wooded savanna.
Altitude Range
0–2000 m
Climate Zone
Tropical
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 2/5
The African grey hornbill is a widespread savanna hornbill that often travels in pairs or small family groups. Like other hornbills, the female seals herself inside a tree cavity during nesting, leaving only a slit through which the male passes food. It is an important seed disperser thanks to its fruit-rich diet. Its modest casque and long, decurved bill help with foraging and vocal amplification.
Juvenile bird (L. n. epirhinus) in the Kruger National Park, which lacks the mature bill shape and colours of adults
Temperament
social and active
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats with brief glides
Social Behavior
Usually seen in pairs or small family parties, sometimes joining loose mixed flocks in savanna woodlands. Monogamous pairs nest in natural tree cavities; the female seals the entrance with mud and feces, leaving a narrow slit through which the male feeds her and the chicks. After fledging, family groups often remain loosely associated.
Migratory Pattern
Resident
Song Description
Gives loud, ringing whistles and clucking notes, often in repetitive series. Duets between pair members are common at dawn and dusk, carrying far across open savanna.
Plumage
Mostly grey-brown upperparts with paler grey neck and head, whitish underparts, and blackish flight feathers creating a two-toned wing. The tail is dark with white outer edges and tips. A long, decurved bill bears a small casque.
Diet
An opportunistic omnivore that eats a mix of fruits (especially figs and other soft fruits) and a wide array of invertebrates such as beetles, termites, and grasshoppers. It also takes small vertebrates including lizards and the occasional nestling. It often hawks insects in short sallies from perches and gleans prey from foliage and bark. During termite emergences it may gather in numbers to exploit the resource.
Preferred Environment
Forages in the canopy and midstory of open woodland and along woodland edges, as well as in riparian trees. It will enter farmlands and gardens where fruiting trees and insect prey are available, and occasionally feeds on the ground.
