Page 60 - Devotion Among Animals Revealing the Work of God

DEVOTION AMONG ANIMALS

Hornbill Nests

For the hornbill, the mating season heralds the beginning of great
activity. During this period, both males and females make an outstand-
ing performance. The first thing they need to do is build a safe nest for
the female and their offspring.
The female hornbill starts work by finding a suitable hole in a tree
that will shelter the nest. She narrows the opening on the tree by plas-
tering it with pellets of mud she carries in her beak. After entering the
nest through the narrowed hole, she seals the entrance with mud that

has dropped inside, thus reducing the gap to a beak-size slit. This will
protect the female and their offspring from external dangers, particu-
larly from snakes. After the nest is finalized, the female sits for three
months without once leaving the nest. The male gathers food and feeds
his mate through this small opening. When the young hatch, they too
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are fed by the same way. Both birds are very patient and dedicated to
their offspring. While the female bird sits in this tree hole barely big
enough for herself, for three month without ever leaving, and the male
never deserts them in all this time.

The male hornbill walls up his mate and eggs in a hole in a tree and
looks after them there.

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