By Monica Verma | Project Leader
Greetings from Wildlife Trust of India.
Recently, our team of veterinarians and animal keepers at the Centre for Wildlife Rehabilitation and Conservation (CWRC) in Assam, India was delighted by a remarkable hornbill behavior.
An oriental pied hornbill fledgling with a corneal injury was found alone and handed over by the locals to our veterinarian, Dr. Samshul Ali. As we treated the bird and put it in a cage outside for recovery, to our amazement, a male hornbill came with food to feed the fledgling.
What's more exciting is that this visiting hornbill was the one we had successfully rehabilitated and released last year (in 2022). The identification ring (ID ring) on the bird's leg, which we had put before it's release, was clearly visible. If you closely observe the picture above, you can see a silver metallic ring on the bird's leg.
So, what happened in 2022? Well, an entire hornbill family - a mother and her three fledglings - was rescued and brought to CWRC. The father had tragically drowned in a nearby reservoir.
In hornbills, mothers seal themselves (and their eggs and hatchlings) into nests made inside tree cavities. They block the entrance with their own droppings to keep predators away until their hatchlings are at least 5 weeks old. All this while, it is the father's responsibility to bring food for the family.
With the tragic death of the father, the family we rescued last year would have starved. But this tragedy was averted, thanks to your support.
Today, that generosity has come to a full circle when one of the nestlings rehabilitated in 2022, came as an adult to feed the hornbill fledgling with the corneal injury!
This behavior is incredible and rare, and its called alloparenting.
Thank you so much for being a part of these beautiful stories of hope, love, and compassion. As we continue our efforts, we are grateful for your ongoing support. With #GivingTuesday on November 28, we once again look up to you to fund our initiative to rescue wild animals and birds in India. Together, let us save nature, one creature at a time!
Video documentation of the hornbill family rescue in 2022
Video documentation of the hornbill fledgeling rescued this year with a corneal injury
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