Grey Hornbill as seen in Rashtrapati Bhavan- The President's estate.

In June 2013, a pair of Indian Grey Hornbills was found to be nesting along the Nature Trail within the Rashtrapati Bhavan. While seeing hornbills in Delhi is not a rare occurrence, seeing a nesting pair is indeed good news as it is not a frequent occurrence! This particular hornbill nest was on a Neem tree and rather unusual in that the nest cavity is almost facing upwards to the sky. The birds were nesting late in the summer season and the rains had started by the time the chicks had hatched. The chicks inside must have been inundated by the first few showers of the monsoons!

Another anomaly is that four Hornbills were seen visiting this nest to feed the chicks. We had no idea that Hornbills had a community practice of bringing up chicks.... Can anyone explain this behaviour?

Also, a Common Myna has been seen frequently visiting the nest-hole. Was it trying to stake out its previous territory, scavenging for leftovers or what? Was it actually feeding the chicks?

This New Delhi nesting pair of hornbills does not cease to amaze us!

Rare nesting pair of Grey Hornbill in heart of Delhi city.

The Indian Grey Hornbill (Ocyceros birostris) is a common hornbill found on the Indian subcontinent. It is mostly arboreal and is commonly sighted in pairs. They have grey feathers all over the body with a light grey or dull white belly. The horn is black or dark grey with a casque extending up to the point of curvature in the horn. They are one of the few hornbill species found within urban areas in many cities where they are able to make use of large avenue trees.

This rare footage of a Grey Hornbill (Tockus birostris) nesting with the grounds of Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Delhi, goes to show that despite being in a bustling city, given the right habitat and nesting conditions (old trees with suitable nest-holes), a bird such as the Indian Grey Hornbill will afford us the rich sight of urban nidification!

The finely forested grounds, and parkland of the Indian President's Estate at Rashtrapati Bhavan affords this bird just the right habitat, feed and cover - a rare oasis in a bustling and burgeoning city...

Source: Wikipedia

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