A classic “lost world” bird: an entire species squeezed onto one tiny volcanic island in the Andaman Sea. It lives only on Narcondam, a steep, forested extinct volcano just 6.8 km² in size, making it a point endemic with the smallest range of any Asian hornbill. Visually, it’s striking but not oversized, with a long tail and a chunky hornbill bill topped by a modest casque. Males and females look quite different. Males have a rich rufous head and neck, a glossy black body and wings, and a white tail, while females are almost entirely black, sharing only the white tail and a small bluish-white throat patch. Both sexes have a pale, slightly pinkish bill etched with shallow brownish grooves near the base, bluish skin around the eye, and dark legs. When a pair flies low over the canopy, white tails flashing and wings whirring, they look surprisingly large against the tiny island backdrop, like forest guardians doing a regular patrol.

By swallowing fruits whole and later excreting the seeds far from the parent tree, they act as primary seed dispersers for many island plants, especially canopy figs that, in turn, feed other birds and bats. In effect, the Narcondam hornbill is one of the main “gardeners” keeping the island’s forest regenerating. Its social life is centred on small groups and pairs; birds call with harsh “ka-ka-ka” notes in flight and more complex “ko…kokoko…” patterns near nest trees.

Like other hornbills, it has dramatic nesting behaviour: the female enters a natural tree cavity, then the pair seals the entrance with mud and debris until only a slit remains. She stays inside to lay and incubate eggs and rear chicks, shedding her flight feathers and relying entirely on the male to deliver food through the narrow opening.

Distribution

Country

Population est.

Status

Year

Comments

India

750-1,400 i

Official estimate

VU

2020