Monteiro's Hornbill Tockus monteiri Scientific name definitions

The Monteiro's Hornbill has the distinction of occupying the driest habitats of any hornbill in the world. Along the Great Escarpment and adjacent rocky hills of central and northwestern Namibia and the southwest of Angola, it ekes out a living in barren, rocky savanna, sometimes receiving less than 100 mm of rain annually. Since its habitat often lacks suitably sized trees for nesting cavities, it typically breeds in rock crevices but will nest in tree cavities or nest boxes when available. The female lays two to eight eggs, and incubation commences with the first-laid egg, resulting in a dominance hierarchy within the brood. In years of above-average rainfall, there typically is sufficient food to raise a large brood to fledge, but the youngest nestlings starve to death in drier years.