Sulawesi birds...

The Red Knobbed Hornbill.......

Red knobbed hornbill     

Aceros cassidix

An impressively colourful and large bird.  

Approaching a fig tree

The whooshing sound of its wings is always the giveaway of its presence.

In a fig tree

Fig fruits are the major source of food that the male will take back to the female.

At the nest

They nest in holes in trees, with the female being cemented inside for 3 months (August - October), totally dependent on the male for bringing her food each day.  At the nest, the male regurgitates many dozens of small black fruits he collected earlier.

Sulawesi hornbill    

Penelopides exarhatus

A rare and endemic hornbill of Sulawesi.  Much smaller than its neighbour.

Malkoha   

Rhamphococcyx calyorhynchus

Also called the monkey bird and it works - learn the call of this bird to locate monkeys.  I think the monkeys disturb insects when raiding fruit and cocunut trees.  The photo above was during one such raid of a coconut plantation.

Lilac kingfisher

Cittura cyanotis

Several forest kingfishers can be found on Sulawesi.  These forest birds do not fish but hunt insects on the forest floor.  This one is endemic to Sulawesi.

Sulawesi serpent eagle

Spilornis rufipectus

These medium sized birds of prey are endemic to Indonesia.  Part of the worldwide serpent or snake eagles, with perhaps the Bateleur of Africa its most famous cousin.  Many of these eagles, particularly those of this genus Spilornis, have a very restricted range, which may be limited to one group of islands. This means that any destruction or degradation of their habitat poses a critical threat to their survival.

Sulawesi hanging parrot

Loriculus stigmatus

Kingfisher

Alcedo athis

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