Hornbills are among the largest birds in the world; some are about four feet long. Their main food is fruit from wild trees, but lizards, mice and small birds are also in their diet.
A most amazing variety, the Malabar pied hornbill, lives in the jungles of Ceylon. About the size of a turkey, it has a huge curved beak in white, orange and black colors, almost as long as its main body. Atop this beak is a high black and orange cap, looking like something that was glued on. The rest of its body is coal-black, except for white patches under its big tail and a chalk-white throat. It nests in fruit trees, where it finds plenty to eat.
Far away in China and Thailand is another species, the rufous-necked. Its huge beak is black on the top and yellow underneath, contrasting with the bright scarlet coloring of its whole body, except for coal-black wings and back and long white tail feathers.
Another one, called the Oriental, nests in a natural hole in the trunk of a big tree. It also has a huge beak (but without the cap) which, when open, looks much like two yellow bananas side by side. Its wings are a combination of speckled black and white, and most other body features are a soft white.
The female of the Oriental has an unusual way of raising her young ones. When ready to lay two or three eggs, she first lines her nest with fresh grass and leaves. Then she squeezes through the narrow opening and closes all but a top slit with gooey material applied by her beak, locking herself inside!
While incubating her eggs, her mate faithfully brings food to her, inserting it through the open slit in the entrance. After the eggs hatch she opens the hole, leaving the babies inside, but from the outside she again closes it, leaving a slit at the top as before. She and her mate then feed them through that slit until they are big enough to be released and take care of themselves.
There are others, such as the black-feathered ground hornbill of Africa with a very unusual beak (horn) surrounded by huge pouches of deep red bare flesh. But these few provide typical samples of this unusual piece of God’s creation.
The Lord God is indeed good to all His creation, as mentioned in the opening Bible verse. Two other verses in the same chapter say, “All Thy works shall praise Thee, O Lord; and Thy saints shall bless Thee.” “The Lord is nigh unto all them that call upon Him . . . in truth.” Psalm 145:10,1810All thy works shall praise thee, O Lord; and thy saints shall bless thee. (Psalm 145:10)
18The Lord is nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth. (Psalm 145:18).
Are you one of the happy people who know Him as your Saviour? Do you call on Him in prayer daily?
AUGUST 28, 1994
ML-08/28/1994