Trumpeter Hornbill

Bycanistes bucinator (Temminck, 1824)

≈66 cmLength639 gWeight

This medium-sized hornbill has a black back, a white belly and a large gray casque on the bill.

Busiest months: October–November · Most records: South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe

Least Concern

How to identify

Field marks

Large gray casque on the bill, smaller in the female
Entirely black back and white belly
Red facial skin
White underwing coverts; white also visible at the wingtips in flight

Male, female and young

The female has a smaller casque than the male.

Where and when it's recorded

Busiest months: October–November · Most records: South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe

Trumpeter Hornbill has been recorded at 141 of the 8,276 birding hotspots we track, in 12 countries and regions.

Records by month Southern Hemisphere

Where it's recorded most

Eshowe – Dlinza ForestSouth Africa708 records
Zambezi River near Victoria FallsZimbabwe511 records
Mkhuze GRSouth Africa504 records

More places

St Lucia – iGwalagwala TrailSouth Africa490 records
Arabuko-Sokoke Forest NRKenya311 records
iSimangaliso WP – Eastern ShoresSouth Africa287 records
Umlalazi NRSouth Africa229 records
Victoria FallsZambia220 records
Victoria Falls Rain ForestZimbabwe217 records
St Lucia – iMfolozi River mouthSouth Africa188 records

Countries and regions with the most records

South Africa Zambia Zimbabwe Tanzania Mozambique Kenya Malawi Botswana

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 trumpeter hornbill (Bycanistes bucinator) is a medium-sized hornbill, with length between 58 and 65 cm (23 and 26 in), characterized by a large grey casque on the bill, smaller in females. The eyes are brown or red, with pink surrounding skin. Body mass is between 0.45 and 1 kg (0.99 and 2.20 lb).

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