• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer
Zippy Facts Logo

Zippy Facts

Interesting Random Facts

  • Animals
  • Culture
  • Firsts
  • Food
  • Geography
  • Health
  • History
  • Inventions
  • Language
  • Mythology
  • Odds
  • People
  • Religion
  • Science
  • Space
  • Universe
  • World
You are here: Home / Animals / How does the Male Hornbill Bird Prevent the Nesting Female From Leaving the Nest?

How does the Male Hornbill Bird Prevent the Nesting Female From Leaving the Nest?

April 30, 2020 by Karen Hill

Hornbills, also known by its scientific name “Bucerotidae” are a family of bird found in tropical and sub-tropical Africa and Asia.

hornbill

When it’s time for the female hornbill to lay her eggs, she finds a hollow in a tree trunk and builds her nest.

While she’s busy setting up her nest, the male begins sealing up the hole in the tree with mud, bird droppings, and chewed food.

He leaves a small hole for her beak, and spends the rest of her roosting time bringing her food and feeding her through this hole.

When the chicks hatch, the mother hornbill breaks out of the mud prison and reseals her babies in the tree trunk, leaving, again, a hole through which they may be fed by both parents.

Although the process looks like male domination, the mother bird breaks out as soon as her chicks are hatched, the sealing is probably not strong enough to keep her in against her will.

The function of this behavior is to protect the nesting site from rival hornbills, and predators such as monkeys and tree snakes that love to eat hornbill eggs.

We can say that the nests are sealed with a kiss.

Related Facts

  • Why Are Eggs Egged Shaped and How Does the Ovoid Shape of An Egg Prevent It From Rolling Out of The Nest?
  • Why do Mother Penguins Abandon Their Eggs Leaving the Penguin Fathers to Raise the Chicks Alone?
  • How do you tell the Difference between a Male Alligator from a Female Alligator?
  • How Many Eggs Does a Bird Lay?
  • Is it true that some fish are both male and female?
  • Where does Salmonella come from and How does Salmonella Bacteria spread?

Filed Under: Animals

About Karen Hill

Karen Hill is a freelance writer, editor, and columnist. Born in New York, her work has appeared in the Examiner, Yahoo News, Buzzfeed, among others.

Previous Post: « What was the Fiercest Predatory Bird of All Time and How Did the Terror Birds Get Their Name?
Next Post: Which Other Birds Lay Eggs in Another Mother Bird’s Nest Besides Cuckoos and Why? »

Footer

Follow

  • Facebook
  • Flickr
  • GitHub
  • Google+
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Medium
  • Pinterest
  • StumbleUpon
  • Tumblr
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Categories

Accomplishments Animals Culture Firsts Food Geography Health History Inventions Language Mythology Odds People Religion Science Space Universe World Your Body

About

Zippy Facts empowers the world by serving educational content that is accessible to everyone.

A tribute to growing up, zippyfacts.com showcases interesting and unusual facts about the world.

Our mission is to use technology to facilitate knowledge transfer and sharing.

Copyright © 2020 Zippy Facts

  • About Us
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy