ZOOLOGY. 
357 
lower slopes, and the great white-necked raven, alluded 
to and illustrated in Chapter XIII. 
The great crested hornbill (Buceros cristatus) is 
generally distributed over the mountain up to 6000 
feet, especially near habitations. They show no fear 
of man, being generally protected by the natives, who 
look upon them with superstitious awe, arising pos¬ 
sibly from their being useful scavengers, as well as 
from their peculiar loud cry, which resembles at times 
Fig. 68.—The dying Hornbill. 
that of the wailing of a woman in distress, at others 
that of the braying of an ass. In August and Sep¬ 
tember they are generally breeding, and occasionally 
the head of the female may be seen peering out from 
a hole in a tree, some thirty or forty feet high, where 
she has been plastered in by her affectionate husband. 
By the chips lying about it would appear that these 
holes are excavated by the birds to the required size. 
They are monogamous, and show great affection for 
each other, which is fortunate, as the female during 
