| Ground-hornbill | ||||||||||||||
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Southern Ground Hornbill
(Bucorvus leadbeateri) |
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| Scientific classification | ||||||||||||||
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Bucorvus leadbeateri Bucorvus abyssinicus |
The Ground-hornbills (Bucorvinae) are a subfamily of the hornbill family Bucerotidae, with a single genus Bucorvus and two extant species:
- Abyssinian Ground-hornbill Bucorvus abyssinicus
(also known as Northern Ground-hornbill)
Southern Ground-hornbill Bucorvus leadbeateri
The subfamily is endemic to sub-Saharan Africa - Abyssinian Ground-hornbill being found in a belt from Senegal east to Ethiopia, with Southern Ground-hornbill occurring in the south and east of the continent.
A prehistoric ground-hornbill, Bucorvus brailloni, has been described from fossil bones.
Ground hornbills are large, with adults around a metre tall. Both species are ground-dwelling, unlike other hornbills. Some ornithologists raise the Ground-hornbills to family level on account of this and other distinctive features.