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Common Name : Brown Hornbill
Scientific Name : Anorrhinus austeni
Order : Coraciiformes Family : Bucerotidae (Hornbills)
Range : Assam, Myanmar and sw China to Thailand and Indochina

This Species is Monotypic, No Subspecies

3rd Edition, 2003. Revised and Corrected per Corrigenda to December 31, 2006

Common Name : Brown Hornbill
Scientific Name : Anorrhinus tickelli
Number of SubSpecies : 2

Sub Species / Race
Anorrhinus tickelli austeni
Anorrhinus tickelli tickelli

IOC Common Name : Austen's Brown Hornbill
IOC Scientific Name : Anorrhinus austeni

Distribution :
Region : OR Range : Assam to sw China and Indochina.
Order : BUCEROTIFORMES Family : Bucerotidae
Category : Hornbills
Note: Anorrhinus austeni is split from A.tickelli (Kemp 1995, Rasmussen & Anderton 2005); BLI recognizes. Separation of the hoopoes and hornbills as the Order Bucerotiformes maintains monophyly of the Coraciiformes without submerging the Piciformes and Trogoniformes into the Coraciiformes (Hackett et al. 2008). The hornbills (Bucerotidae) and ground hornbills (Bucorvidae) are sister taxa, related in turn to the hoopoes and wood hoopoes (Hackett et al. 2008)

SYNOPIS NO : 770

Scientific Name: Philolaemus tickelli
Common Name: White Throated Brown Hornbill

Common Name : Austen's Brown Hornbill
Scientific Name : Anorrhinus austeni (Jerdon, 1872)
Birdlife Synonym :

BirdLife Redlist Status Year 2010: NT
BirdLife Species FactSheet for Austen's Brown Hornbill ( Anorrhinus austeni )

Taxonomy Treatment : R

Birdlife Taxonomy Notes : Anorrhinus tickelli (Sibley and Monroe 1990, 1993) has been split into A. tickelli and A. austeni following Rasmussen and Anderton (2005).

IUCN Common Name (Eng) : Austen's Brown Hornbill
Scientific Name : Anorrhinus austeni (Jerdon, 1872)
IUCN Redlist Species FactSheet for Austen's Brown Hornbill ( Anorrhinus austeni )

Species : austeni
Genus : Anorrhinus
Family : Bucerotidae Order : Coraciiformes

IUCN RedList Status : NT

IUCN RedList Criteria Version : 3.1
IUCN RedList Year Assessed : 2008
IUCN RedList Population Trend : decreasing
IUCN RedList Petitioned : N

Family : BUCEROTIDAE

Scientific Name : Anorrhinus tickelli
Common Name : Brown Hornbill

IOC Checklist Difference : Tickell's Brown Hornbill;Anorrhinus austeni Austen's Brown Hornbill;
Birdlife Checklist Difference : Tickell's Brown Hornbill;Anorrhinus austeni Austen's Brown Hornbill;

Birdlife Checklist Justification : Anorrhinus tickelli (Sibley and Monroe 1990, 1993) has been split into A. tickelli and A. austenifollowing Rasmussen and Anderton (2005).
OBC Checklist Justification : Kemp (1988, 1995) treatedausteni as a separate species, based on the difference in bill colour of adult females and head colour of males. He added that 'there may also be differences in calls and softpart colours but these remain to be clarified'.
Other Justification : Rasmussen & Anderton (2005) noted that 'Recent treatment as a distinct species from tickelli is supported by the broader, higher, truncate casque and white throat of male austeni, and the all-pale bill and (usually all-dark tail of female austeni (vs. blackish bill and large white tail-corners in tickelli.' However,Peters (1945) and Sanft (1960) treated them as conspecific, based on morphological similarity; C. R. Robson (pers. comm. 1996) found that vocalizations of the two forms were very similar.

 

Godwin-Austen's Hornbill.

Anorhinus galeritus, apud Godw.-Aust. J. A. S. B. xxxix, pt. 2, p. 90; xii, pt. 2, p. 143 ; id. Ibis, 1878, p. 206; nec Temm. Anorhinus austeni, Jerdon, Ibis, 1872, p. 6; Hume, S. F. iv, p. 493; v, p. 117; vii, pp. 167, 499: xi, p. 52; id. Cat. no. 144 ter; Hartert, J. f. Orn. 1889, p. 426. Ptilolaemus austeni, Ogilvie Grant, Cat. B. M. xvii, p. 393.

Coloration. Male. Similar to that of P. tickelli, except that the cheeks, throat, sides of neck, and fore-neck are white instead of rufous, and the rest of the lower parts paler; the secondaries and middle tail-feathers too are not tipped white. The upper parts appear greyer, but this may be due to the state of the plumage. Female unknown.

Length about 31; tail 11.5; wing 12.5; tarsus 2 ; bill from gape 4.7.

Distribution. The only specimen known for a long time was obtained by Colonel Godwin-Austen at Asalu, in the North Cachar hills; subsequently three more were shot by Hartert in the hill-forest south of the Dehing; this species was also observed by Hume in Manipur.

Habits, &c. Very little known. Hartert came upon a flock of 8 or 10, and far from being as shy as P. tickelli, they allowed him to fire six shots and kill four birds, one of which was left hanging in a high tree, before they flew away. Their flight was rather noisy. They had eaten a few insects (Mantides, Blattae, and locusts) besides fruit.

 

Godwin-Austen's Hornbill.

Anorrhinus austeni Jerdon, Ibis, 1872, p. 6 (North Cachar Hills). Ptilolaemus austeni. Blanf. & Oates, iii, p. 153.

Vernacular names. Dao-yung-lai (Cachari).

Description. - Male. Differs from the preceding bird in having no white tips to the central tail-feathers; the sides of the head, chin and throat are almost pure white and the fore-neck a very pale rufous; the pale markings on the wings are less in extent, the coverts, as a rule, having no rufous edgings; the under surface is much the same as in P. t. tickelli.

Colours of soft parts. Iris dull brown ; bill and casque dull wax-yellow, reddish-yellow on the sides near the base; orbital skin pale yellow; legs dull horny-green, sides dull dirty yellow; claws dusky black.

Measurements. Wing 312 to 337 mm.; tail 281 to 297 mm.; tarsus 49 to 50 mm.; culmen 121 to 135 mm.

Female. Similar to that of Tickell's Hornbill but much darker,, more grey-brown below with little or no rufous on the fore-neck and upper breast; the bill is coloured as in the male but paler and is not brown as in P. t. ticketti.

Measurements. About the same as in the male.

Young females sexed both by myself and by Peddie in North Cachar as well as by Dr. Coltart in Lakhimpur, were in plumage similar to that of the male and I have on doubt as to the correctness of our sexing.

Distribution. Throughout the hill ranges of Assam, South of the Brahmaputra from the North of North Cachar to the extreme East of Assam round about Margherita. I saw it once in the Jetinga Yalley in the South of North Cachar and Hume thought he observed it in Manipur.

Nidification. I first took this bird's egg on the 19th May, 1893, in North Cachar and subsequently Coltart and I had many birds brought to us with their eggs taken round about Margherita in Eastern Lakhimpur. The nest-holes, some of which we visited, were large natural hollows in biggish trees but not very high up. The highest we saw was about 25 feet up but, according to the Nagas, two others were at a very great height. Others we saw varied between 15 and 20 feet. The full clutch seems to be three eggs, sometimes two and, it is said, rarely four or even five. Twenty-four average 48.8 x 34.2 mm.: maxima 57.0 x 34.1 and 49.3 x 35.4 mm.; minima 46.0 x 3.30 mm.

Habits. This is a very common Hornbill in the extreme East of Assam both in the plains immediately next the hills"and in the hills themselves up to 2,000 and less commonly 1,000 feet higher.. I once met with them at an elevation of about 3,600 feet but this was a most exceptional occurrence and possibly they were enticed to this height by the fact that a large area of bamboo was seeding, an event which brings together a vast assemblage of seed-eating birds. The flocks number from half-a-dozen up to forty or more and these often mix with flocks of Pied Hornbills. The two are not unlike in habits but we never saw Austen's Hornbill on the ground and those we examined had fed almost exclusively on fruit, seeds and shoots. A few had eaten insects and one had eaten two small tree-frogs. Their voice is like the cackling of the Pied Hornbill but much softer and they have a call, peculiar to themselves, not unlike the subdued trumpet of a Peafowl, The flight consists of alternate flappings and sailings, the noise caused being a soft whirring easily recognized when once heard.

 

Anorrhinus austeni Jerdon, Ibis, Jan. 1872, p. 6 : N. Cachar Hills.