Southern Red-billed Hornbill Tockus rufirostris

A small, black-and-white hornbill with a petite red bill; male has a black base to the mandible. Pairs occur in open savanna with sparse ground cover, where they hop on the ground foraging for invertebrates. The territorial display, given with the head bowed and wings spread, starts with a series of “kok-kok-kok” notes, becoming a rolling bisyllabic “kokok-kokok”. Similar Damara Red-billed Hornbill differs by having brown (not yellow) eyes and an unmarked creamy white head and neck. Jackson’s Hornbill is larger, with a more robust bill and dark face and eyes. Crowned Hornbill has a solidly brown back and orange bill.