Black-Casqued Hornbill Skull

Approximate Size: 8x3x5" Hornbills are fascinating birds with unique traits and behaviors making them an interesting topic of study for ornithologists, conservationists and collectors alike. You may have noticed the boney lump on the top of it's beak (it's kinda hard not too). The casque, a hollow structure on top of the beak, serves multiple purposes. It is used as visual signal of sexual maturity, as a resonating chamber for calls, and for aerial jousting during mating season. So, love in the clouds is just another date night for these fascinating birds. The weight of a hornbill's casque and bill are so heavy that their first two neck vertebrae are fused to support the weight. That's a lot of evolution to support their romantic ways. The calls made by the bird range from deep booming sounds as they begin foraging to brays, toots, bellows, and cackles. It's like a love song but no saxophone or lyrics made up from 60% of the word "baby".  The black-casqued hornbill is also known as blacked-casqued wattled hornbill that belongs to the Bucerotidae family. This species is one of the great African hornbills, its range is vast and covers almost 2.1 million square kilometers in West Africa, Liberia, Zaire and Angola. They tend to stay away from the coast and prefer the rainforests and forest galleries. In other words, they have no interest in a day at the beach and do not enjoy surf rock. While they may not like The Beach Boys, that doesn't mean they don't like to sing. At dawn, they move in small noisy troops in search of food while serenading the jungles below. Once they have found their hang out spot for the day they tend to stay put. These hornbill hideaways are generally about 150 - 170 feet above the ground! It's a fascinating creature and it's skull is really something special. If you've been looking for a new skull to elevate your collection, this is it. All skulls and bones vary slightly in size and shape. You will receive a high quality specimen of the selected item but not the exact one pictured.