Bird Album
Great Hornbill
Buceros bicornis Linnaeus, 1758
90–130 cmLength152 cmWingspan2.8 kgWeight
This large hornbill has a large yellow-and-black casque on the bill, with two horn-like projections at the front.
Busiest months: February–March · Most records: Thailand, India, Cambodia
How to identify
Field marks
- Large yellow-and-black casque on the bill
- Casque U-shaped from the front, with a depressed top
- Very large, about 95–130 cm long
- Conspicuous “eyelashes” above the eyes
Male, female and young
The female is smaller than the male and has bluish-white eyes; the male has red eyes.
Voice
Pairs give loud duets in the breeding season: the male begins with a loud “kok”, and the female joins in unison, gradually building into rapid roars and barks.
Where and when it's recorded
Great Hornbill has been recorded at 192 of the 8,171 birding hotspots we track, in 13 countries and regions.
Records by month Northern Hemisphere
To protect this bird from disturbance, we don't list exact sites.
Countries and regions with the most records
eBird records via GBIF up to 2024-12-31. A record means someone listed it; more records partly mean more birders, not more birds.
About
The great hornbill (Buceros bicornis), also known as the concave-casqued hornbill, great Indian hornbill or great pied hornbill, is one of the larger members of the hornbill family. It occurs in the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia. It is predominantly frugivorous, but also preys on small mammals, reptiles, and birds.
Excerpt from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · authors · Read more on Wikipedia
Questions
How big is the Great Hornbill?
The Great Hornbill is about 90–130 cm long, with a wingspan of 152 cm and weighs around 2.8 kg.
Where does the Great Hornbill live?
Its breeding range: Oriental: western India, Himalayas to Sumatra. It is most often recorded in Thailand, India and Cambodia.
When is the best time to see the Great Hornbill?
At the hotspots we track, it is recorded most in February and March (Northern Hemisphere).
Is the Great Hornbill endangered?
The IUCN Red List classifies the Great Hornbill as Vulnerable.
What does the Great Hornbill eat?
Main food: Fruit.
What family is the Great Hornbill in?
It belongs to the family Hornbills (Bucerotidae), order Bucerotiformes.
At a glance
- Length
- 90–130 cm
- Wingspan
- 152 cm
- Weight
- 2.8 kg
- Habitat
- Forest
- Diet
- Fruit
- Lifestyle
- Perches in trees
- Migration
- Resident (barely migrates)
- Conservation
- Vulnerable
More measurements
- Wing
- 509 mm
- Tail
- 421 mm
- Bill
- 356 mm
- Tarsus
- 74 mm
Averages from the AVONET dataset; length from field guides where available.
Range
Oriental: western India, Himalayas to Sumatra
Breeding range, IOC World Bird List 15.2
Classification
- Order
- Bucerotiformes
- Family
- Hornbills Bucerotidae
- Genus
- Buceros
Other birds in the genus Buceros
Rhinoceros HornbillBuceros rhinoceros
Rufous HornbillBuceros hydrocorax
Abyssinian Ground HornbillBucorvus abyssinicus
Southern Ground HornbillBucorvus leadbeateri
Tanzanian Red-billed HornbillTockus ruahae
Western Red-billed HornbillTockus kempi
Damara Red-billed HornbillTockus damarensis
Southern Red-billed HornbillTockus rufirostris
Northern Red-billed HornbillTockus erythrorhynchus
Monteiro's HornbillTockus monteiri
Download illustration
Free to use with credit: “Illustration: Bird Album (birdalbum.com)”. Drawn by AI from a reference photo by sssuresh. ↗
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