Birda Logo
Features
Birda+
About
Species Guide
Challenges
Shop
loading...
A photo of a Rufous-necked Hornbill (Aceros nipalensis), male
Rufous-necked Hornbill, Male

Rufous-necked Hornbill

Aceros nipalensis

The Rufous-necked Hornbill, Aceros nipalensis, is a majestic bird, distinguished by its impressive size and vibrant plumage. Males boast a rich rufous coloration on their underparts, neck, and head, while females are cloaked in black, save for the white tips on their tails and middle primaries. This species is one of the larger members of the Bucerotine hornbills, reaching lengths of about 117 cm.

Identification Tips

Adult males are readily identified by their rufous head, neck, and lower body, with deeper hues on the flanks and abdomen. Their middle primaries and the lower half of the tail are tipped with white. The rest of their plumage gleams with a glossy dark-green and black, and their lower tail-covert feathers are a mix of chestnut and black. Females, on the other hand, are predominantly black with white tail tips and primary tips. Juveniles mirror the adults but lack the ridges at the base of the upper beak, which develop with age.

Habitat

The Rufous-necked Hornbill is found in ridged and hilly forests, favoring primarily temperate broadleaf and mixed forests at elevations ranging from 150 to 2,200 meters. It has also been known to inhabit dry woodlands.

Distribution

This hornbill has a northernmost distribution, spanning from Northeast India and central Bhutan to western Thailand and northwestern Vietnam. It is locally extinct in Nepal. Notable locations include Mahananda Wildlife Sanctuary, Buxa Tiger Reserve, and Namdapha National Park.

Behaviour

These hornbills exhibit a seasonal movement pattern, traversing between forests to forage from fruiting trees whose offerings change with local conditions. The nesting period extends from March to June, with a preference for tall trees with broad girths.

Conservation status

The Rufous-necked Hornbill is currently classified as Vulnerable, with fewer than 10,000 adults remaining in the wild. It is protected under CITES Appendix I and resides in several protected areas across its range. Conservation efforts include the Hornbill Nest Adoption Programme and initiatives to replace real beak usage with fiber-made replicas.

In culture

The Rufous-necked Hornbill, known in Sanskrit literature as vārdhrīnasa, holds cultural significance in regions like Arunachal Pradesh, where its feathers and beaks have been traditionally used by tribal communities.

App logo
Birda is a birdwatching app and community aimed at curious people who want to deepen their connection with nature.

Rufous-necked Hornbills on Birda

Sightings
A map showing the sighting location
🦢
Hemant Kirola
10 Apr 2023 - 1:47pm
India

More Hornbills

A photo of a Austen's Brown Hornbill (Anorrhinus austeni) , male

Austen's Brown Hornbill

Anorrhinus austeni
Birda Logo

Your birdwatching journey like never before

Connect with nature in minutes
Take a walk, look out of the window and log the birds that you see. Feel good about those little connections to nature.
Discover the joy of birding
Find new birding spots, see more birds, share and celebrate with a like-minded community of nature lovers.
Play your part in saving nature
Logging your birding sightings and sessions turns into positive action for our planet. Every sighting counts.

Birda Blog

What Our Birders Say
SW H
Wonderful App
Birda is my go to app for keeping records of my bird sightings and sessions. It has fantastic information which is great at aiding identification. With all the updates that are coming in the new year, this app is something special.
Madstherangers
A mordern game changer
Birda is an awesome app, its updated the world of birding to the modern day with a fun and easy to use app. It’s engaging and allows positive interaction with fellow bird lovers!
Alex J
Friendly and helps to identify birds
Great birding app, good for logging your sightings, also has nice species guide. I'm enjoying the social aspect more than I expected, everyone seems friendly and helps to identify unknown birds. Good mix of newbies and experienced users.
Nick S
Work together with community
Been loving using this app to log my bird sightings and work together with community members to identify different birds. I've already learned a lot since I started about a month ago!
Nedz53
Really useful
Downloaded to give it a try, everything worked perfectly, recorded my first bird watching walk. Very impressed. Have already recommended to friends!
Jane N
A great app
Enjoying it immensely and finding it useful too. Recording the different birds and counting them is showing me how the present climate is affecting them all. I've trebled the numbers by planting native hedging. A great app.
Anonymous
The best bird logging app
Birda is honestly the best bird logging app I have seen. I love all the features it has from being able to do a session and log all the birds you see in one sitting, to being able to connect with other birders from all over the globe!
Birdafan
Ideal Birdwatch Companion
Simply adds to the enjoyment of my birdwatching and helps me record what I’ve seen.
Patricia L
Very encouraging birding app
Easy to use, fun to see progress and encouraging to receive feedback from other users.
Safira V
Birding and wellbeing app
Birda is an excellent platform to share your love of Birding and is a great tool of encouragement for a Birding Beginner like me. Birda has a very kind and supportive community of Birding enthusiasts. For me BIRDA is not only a BIRDING but also a WELLBEING App.
As featured in
Birda Logo
AboutPressAmbassadorsAffiliatesInfluencersCareersPrivacyTerms & Conditions
An app for birdwatchers
Connect with us
Copyright © 2024 Chirp Birding. All rights reserved.