Southern Ground Hornbill Project
HR SOUTHERN GROUND HORNBILL NEST PROJECT: UPDATE
(21/10/2021)
Residents may have recently heard a lot of booming ground hornbill calls from Lionspruit, at the crack of dawn, a few days in a row. In fact, it was a team from HR, led by Genie Retief, playing a special recording. It is breeding season, and the aim was to entice a pair to use our custom-built nest, erected last year in November. This specific call sends the message to surrounding ground hornbills that, ‘You can come breed here; this territory not taken’.
These fascinating and unique birds are a threatened species, mostly due to there being so few trees left with big nesting holes. (They don’t seal themselves into cavities like other hornbills.) Last year Dr Lucy Kemp agreed that Lionspruit is a promising new breeding site, and a tree by Impala Dam was selected. Dr Kemp is the Project Manager for the Southern Ground Hornbills project and co-chair IUCN SSC Hornbill Specialist (Africa).
Dr. Kemp is the winner of the 2020 Whitley Awards, and we are excited to have had her input in this vital project. In the clip of her acceptance speech (on the right), she shares how her passion for the Southern Ground Hornbill was formed in the Kruger National Park, and her vision for helping to save them from extinction.
Much as the dawn patrol (Genie Retief, Joce Gordon, Ron Donachie, Rosemary Muldoon and Judy Norton) willed it to happen, all of us peering into the gloom, we did not see any hornbills arrive to take up residence.
We did hear some calling on the first day, and Dr Kemp says there is still a chance a pair might arrive. All that needs to happen is for us to get them to investigate the ‘hornbills’ from our recording. These birds are so intelligent that they will find and remember that the nest is there for when they want to use it.
We also don’t have to worry that other tenants, like pythons, Verreaux’s eagle owls or genets will move in. If these big birds see the nest, they will turf out other competitors.
But for now, we have to be patient and accept that, as with everything in conservation, this is a long game.
Do message/ whatsapp us on +27 60 675 7275 if you see any ground hornbills in Lionspruit, or Marloth, and if possible send a pin location. We will then play the special call again to invite them to stay.
Thanks to all who have donated to this nationally – in fact internationally – important project, especially Paula and Hans-Jeurgen Volkmer who paid for the 40 kg nest, which mimics a huge tree cavity. We would like to install a nest-monitoring camera once we have a resident pair. If you would like to participate in the purchase of the cameras, you can donate via the button below, or if you prefer, our banking details are:
ABSA, account number 4052747002. Please reference your name and Ground Hornbill.
