Rufous-necked Hornbill
Aceros nipalensis
The rufous-necked hornbill (Aceros nipalensis) is a species of hornbill in Bhutan, northeastern India, especially in Arunachal Pradesh, Indian Subcontinent and Southeast Asia. It is locally extinct in Nepal due to hunting and significant loss of habitat. There are less than 10,000 adults left in the wild. With a length of about 117 cm, it is among the largest Bucerotine hornbills. The underparts, neck and head are rich rufous in the male, but black in the female.
The head, neck, and lower body of the male are coloured rufous, with deeper colouration on the flanks and abdomen. The middle primaries and the lower half of the tail are tipped white. The rest of the hornbill's plumage is a glossy dark-green and black. The lower tail-covert feathers are coloured chestnut mixed with black. The female is black, except for the end-portion of her tail and the tips of the middle primaries, which are white. Juvenile hornbills resemble adults of the same sex, but lack the ridges at the base of the upper beak. The beak lacks a true caique but is thickened at its base. It has a number of dark ridges on the upper beak which are absent in the young and increase in number with age up to about seven. The commissure of the beaks is broken in both sexes.