Papuan Hornbill

The Papuan Hornbill is a subspecies of Blyth’s Hornbill native only to the forests of Papua New Guinea. Other subspecies of Blyth’s Hornbills occur on different South Pacific islands including the Solomon Islands, Moluccas, and Bismarck Archipelago. The Papuan subspecies has deeper brown coloring on the male’s head and neck when compared to the more blonde color of the Solomon Island subspecies that is also kept in the US. All females of this species have black heads and necks with contrasting blue skin pouches and blue eye-rings. They are usually found in dense tropical forests where they primarily consume fruit but will also take some insects and small vertebrate prey, especially during breeding season. The only known two pairs of the Papuan subspecies in the US are housed at the Avian Resources breeding facility.