'niE ]rORNRII.T.S. 



till the full prrowtli of the bird, nnd the clifference between the males and females 

 is very considerable, the determination of the species has been attended with no small 

 degree of difficulty. Buflon has not failed to descant on the mal-conformation of 

 the bill, and on its liability to bruises and fractures ; but ho was not aware of tlie 

 fact, that these injuries are annually repaired by an inherent reproductive power, so 

 that even the missing serratures are replaced at every moulting. These birds walk 

 little and awkwardly, and generally perch on trees, especially such as are dead, in 

 the hollows of which thev breed. 



THE CONC.WT. HOUxini.l,.* 



This is a most remarkable bird, the largest of the species. Tlie beak, from the ej'e to 

 the tip, measures one foot ; the distance from the eye to the end of the tail is three feet 

 four inches. Of this we give, in a full-paged engraving, a very striking and accurate 

 representation. Active and alert, notwithstanding the magnitude of its beak, this bird 

 lightly traverses the trees of the forest, which resounds with its roar. The body is muscular 

 and vigorous ; the tail is large ; the wings rounded ; the colour is black and white ; the 

 feathers about the cheeks and back of the neck are loose and hair-like ; and the bill is 

 yellowish, with a tinge of scarlet. 



The African hornbill {Buccros Africanus) is entirely black, and nearly as large as a 

 turkey. The crowned species [B. coyo)iaf)is) is a much smaller bird, scarcely equalling the size 

 of a magpie. Le Vaillant saw a ilock ofmore than five hundred of these birds, in company 

 with crows and vultures, preying on the remains of slaughtered elephants. It is 

 accurately represented in the preceding page. A large and remarkable Indian species 

 has been of late years described by Mr. Hodgson. It measures four feet live inches 

 from tip to tip of the wings, and is three feet six inches in length. Its body exceeds 

 that of the largest raven, but is very lean and incompact. It is believed to feed 

 chiefly on fruits, although it will seize upon reptiles when j^ressed by hunger. Its 

 freedom from any offensive smell, and the excellence of its flesh, which is much 

 esteemed as an article of food, go far to prove that its habits are chiefly frugivo- 

 rous. In a domestic state it will eat meat either raw or dressed. Mr. Hodgson's 

 specimen, however, was fed mostly on boiled rice mixed with ghee, and made into large 

 balls. It was never observed to take any water. Whenever it swallowed a mouthful 

 which on second thoughts it considered as somewhat too large, it immediately disgorged 

 it for the sake of a little additional mastication. 



THE RHIXOCEROS HOUNDtEL.t 



This bird is black ; the tail is tipped with white ; the beak yellowish and recurved, 

 the casque is red above ; the general size is that of '* hen turkey, but more slender in 

 proportion ; the extent of ^^^ng is nearly four feet ; the neck is of moderate length ; and 

 the tale is slighth' cuneated. The plumage is black, but exhibiting, when exposed to a 

 strong light, a slight bluish gloss ; but the lower part of the abdomen and the tail are 

 white. The bill measures about ten inches in length, and is of a slightly curved form, 

 sharp-pointed, serrated in a somewhat irregular manner on the edges, and furnished at 

 the base of the upper mandible with an extremely large process, continued for a 

 considerable space in a parallel dii'ection with the bill, and then turned upwards in a 

 contrary direction, in the style of a reverted horn. This appendage, which i.s eight 



• Buccvos Cavati'.s. t B- IHiiiiocnos. — Linn. 



