The Zoologist/4th series, vol 6 (1902)/Issue 728/Some account of the Ground Hornbill or Brom-vogel (''Bucorax cafer''), Sclater

by William Lutley Sclater

 

SOME ACCOUNT OF THE GROUND HORNBILL,
OR BROM-VOGEL (BUCORAX CAFER).

By W.L. Sclater, M.A., F.Z.S.

 

This interesting bird belongs to a genus confined to Africa, and containing only two species—one found in West and Northeast Africa, distinguished by possessing a conspicuous and

abruptly truncate casque on the bill at the base; the other, our present bird, which has no casque, as can be well seen by the figure here given.

The Brom-vogel is found in the eastern half of Cape Colony, especially in the partially wooded and thorn country below the mountain ranges in Natal, in the low country of the Transvaal and Rhodesia, and along the Zambesi Valley as far as Northern Damaraland and Angola, and northwards throughout Nyasaland and German East Africa. It is generally known as the "Turkey Buzzard," or "Wild Turkey," among the English colonists; the "Brom-vogel" among the Dutch; and the "Intsingizi" among the Kafirs and Zulus.

Its appearance is sufficiently remarkable. Its plumage is black throughout, except the primary feathers of the wings, which are white, but which are not seen, as a rule, when the bird is at rest or walking. The naked skin round the eyes and the wattle on the throat are a vermilion-red, and this no doubt has gained for it its familiar name of "Wild Turkey."

These curious birds move about the country in small troops of from six to eight individuals; they feed entirely on the ground, and are more generally seen in the open, though sometimes to be found in the bush. Unlike other Hornbills, they walk, and do not hop, and, when pressed at all, can run at a very good pace. Occasionally, when flushed, they take to flight, but seldom for farther than half a mile or so, when they generally take refuge in cover, sometimes perching on the branch of a tree. At night also they roost in trees. A favourite resort is a patch of burnt ground; there, with their long beaks, they turn up the sods in search of insects or grubs. Having found a dainty morsel, they take it between the tips of their mandibles, and toss it up in the air, catching it again, and swallowing it immediately. They also kill and eat Snakes, Frogs, Lizards, Tortoises, Rats, and Mice. I have not seen them kill a snake in the dramatic fashion described by Mr. Ayres, but at all times, when they have secured a choice morsel, they will stretch out their wings, jump up in the air, and give vent to their "bromming" sound. Mr. Ayres' oft-quoted account is as follows:—"On discovering a snake, three or four of the birds will advance sideways towards it, with their wings stretched out, and, with their quills, flap at and irritate the snake till he seizes them by their wing-feathers, when they immediately all close round, and give him violent pecks with their long and sharp bills, quickly withdrawing again when the snake leaves its hold. This they repeat till the snake is dead. If the reptile advances on them, they place both wings in front of them, completely covering their heads and most vulnerable parts." When the snake is dead they proceed to bite it between their two mandibles throughout its whole length, probably dislocating the snake's backbone. It is then swallowed head first, and, if the snake is a large one, the bird will go about with half of it trailing out from between its jaws. Tortoises, too, are much relished. In this case all the flesh, including the head and limbs, are neatly picked away from the unhappy reptile, leaving the shell clean and entire without damage.

The call is a kind of "boom boom," constantly repeated until it becomes quite wearisome. Mr. Ayres states that it can be heard at a great distance, under favourable circumstances as far as two miles. My experience—which, however, is confined to a bird in captivity—does not quite confirm this; but the sound, though by no means loud, has a remarkable penetrating power. The call of the female is similar, but is pitched a tone above that of the male, and is usually heard in answer to him. When "booming" the red pouch under the throat is generally, though not invariably, distended with air; this action can be performed at will. Mr. Layard lays great stress on the evil stench emitted by this bird, but I have not found this at all noticeable in the case of the individual observed by myself.

A complete account of the nesting habits of the Brom-vogel has not, so far as I am aware, been yet given, but it doubtless builds a nest on the flat crown of a tree where the trunk has decayed away, or else in a hole in a tree. Dr. Stark visited a nest at Boschfontein, near Balgowan, in Natal; it was in a hole some forty feet up in the trunk of a large tree growing in a small piece of thick bush. The birds were stated to nest annually in the same place, and Mr. Hutchinson, who showed him the nest, believed that several females laid in the same hole, as more than one pair of birds visited the young ones. The Brothers Woodward also found a nest built of sticks in a large tree standing by itself on the high flat lands over the Ifafa River, in Natal; in it were two young birds, one much larger than the other.

An egg, now in the South African Museum, taken by Colonel Bowker, at Old Morley, a mission station in Tembuland, is a somewhat elongated oval, tapering to a point; the shell is rather rough and thick; the colour was originally white, but is stained and dirty. The egg measures 2·95 × 1·80 in.

Almost everywhere the natives of South Africa attach magical properties to this bird, chiefly connected with the production of rain. The Kafirs of the eastern portion of the Colony, during times of severe drought, will kill one by order of the "rain doctor." A stone is then attached to its neck, and it is flung into a "vlei," or sometimes into a river. The idea is that the bird, having an offensive smell, will make the water sick, and that, in order to remedy this state of things, rain will fall in great quantities, which will flush out the "vlei" or river. The Ovampos of North Damaraland also have a superstition. When Mr. Andersson asked one of their chiefs to obtain the eggs of this bird for him, he replied that it could not be done, as they were soft to the touch, and would fall to pieces on the least handling.

In captivity this bird makes a charming and delightful companion; it is very sociable, and loves to come and squat close to one to be petted. It is most useful in the garden, as it spends a great deal of its time searching for caterpillars, snails, worms, and grubs of all kinds; should, however, any young chickens or ducks be about, it is well to keep the bird under restraint, as these are delicacies which even the best regulated "Brom" cannot resist.

When resting, the whole length of the tarsus is applied to the ground, and the head is almost withdrawn between the capacious wings, so that only the beak protrudes. It is always hungry, and will eat almost anything from bread and butter to the entrails of fish and poultry. Anything thrown to it is caught in the air with great dexterity between the tips of the bill, and is then tossed up and swallowed; but, when a specially dainty morsel is offered, it will bring it in its beak, with wings uplifted and wattle puffed out, and show it to its master with much "bromming."

I am indebted to the kindness of Miss A. Treggold for the accompanying photograph, which is by far the most successful of a great many attempts made by my friends to portray this very interesting pet.