BUOBEOTID^ LOPHOCEEOS 119 



The female resembles the male, but is smaller, wing 6-6 ; 

 culmen 2'75. Immature birds are darker than the adults. 



Distribution. — This species is confined to Africa south of the 

 Zambesi, being replaced north of that river by the closely- allied 

 L. flavirostris, distinguished by its black-shafted breast feathers. 

 It is spread over Natal, the bush country of the Transvaal, 

 Bechuanaland, Mashonaland and Damaraland, but is stated to 

 be rare in the Zambesi valley by Alexander. The following are 

 recorded localities : Natal — east of Umgeni Eiver (Shelley), Ulundi 

 in Zululand (Woodward) ; Transvaal — Lydenburg Bush Country 

 (Francis in S. A. Mas.), Eustenburg district (Ayres) ; Bechuana- 

 land — Molopo river (Exton in S. A. Mus.), Kanye (Bxton in 

 Bt. Mus.), and Macloutsie river (Gates) ; Ehodesia — Salisbury 

 district (scarce, Marshall) ; German south-west Africa — Gtjim- 

 binque, Schmelen's Hope and Great Namaqualand (Andersson in 

 Bt. Mus.), Omaruru (Eriksson in S. A. Mus.) ; Portuguese east 

 Africa — Zambesi valley, rare (Alexander). 



Habits. — Mr. Andersson states as follows : " This species is the 

 most common of the Hornbills in middle and southern Damaraland. 

 It is found singly or in pairs, and being a comparatively fearless 

 bird is easily killed, especially during the heat of the day, when 

 it invariably perches on or near the top of a lofty tree, and will 

 remain for hours in this situation, keeping up, with short inter- 

 missions, a kind of subdued chattering note of ' toe toe toe, tocky 

 tocky tocky toe,' in a tone not unlike the yelping of young puppies, 

 and accompanied at intervals by a flapping and raising of its wings 

 and an alternate lowering and erecting of its head." 



Like other Hornbills it feeds on fruits and seeds, as well as 

 insects, and Mr. Marshall especially remarks on the way it opens 

 the huge pods of a large leguminous tree with its very powerful 

 bill 



Mr. Eriksson's note book gives the following detailb about the 

 breeding habits of this bird on the Limpopo river, near its junction 

 with the Marico, in what forms part of the Eustenburg district of the 

 Transvaal : " November 27. A bushman brought a hen bird with 

 one egg ; shortly afterwards she laid another, the first was white, 

 covered aU over with a light brown stain ; the second was covered 

 with blood, which was drying up, but came off by washing. I 

 could not wash the first egg white. The nest, as usual, was in a 

 hollow tree, and although it only contained one egg the male had 

 masoned up the entrance, only leaving a small hole through which to 



