THE LIFE OF A SOUTHERN GROUND-HORNBILL

The female lays one or two eggs between August and January and the chicks hatch 42 days later. The mom usually only tends to one of the chicks, and the other dies within a week.

The female stays with the surviving chick for about a month while the male and all the other males in the family group bring them food.

When the southern groundhornbill is a chick, its face and wattle are grey in colour. As it grows, the colour changes to pink, then orange and, when the bird is four or five years old, red. Its feathers are dull brown at first, turning black after about three years. If the bird is lucky, it will live for 40 – 50 years.