As a family of hornbills was bickering over a meal, a scavenger arrived to settle the matter. This interesting video depicts an excellent example of opportunistic scavenging.
Gerrie Smit of Kruger Gateway Safaris submitted this dramatic footage to Latest Sightings. He filmed the action on a game drive in South Africa’s Kruger National Park.
Ground hornbill with catch
As we join Gerrie at the sighting, we encounter a rare sight. An adult ground hornbill has caught a bird, thought to be a spurfowl.
As their name suggests, these large hornbills spend most of their time foraging on the ground. As apex predators, they eat insects, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and small mammals.
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Subsequently, when Gerrie zooms out, we see the bird is not alone. It is part of a family of 6 birds, including one rather demanding juvenile.
As the bird holds its prize aloft, the rest of the group gathers, hoping to share in the meal. However, it seems he wants to keep it all for himself.
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Opportunist arrives
Subsequently, as the bird tries to evade his jealous family, a raptor swoops into view. In the top right of this image, you can see a tawny eagle flying directly towards the hornbill with its prey.
Although capable predators in their own right, tawny eagles are renowned for poaching kills from other birds. After all, why hunt for yourself when you can steal instead?
Somehow, however, the eagle misses its target, landing instead at the feet of another hornbill.
Consequently, the tension among the hornbills ratchets upwards. Now there is one more bird desperate to sink its bill into the kill.
Anxious juvenile
While the eagle gathers itself out of sight, the juvenile hornbill makes another desperate attempt to steal the spurfowl.
Note that the young bird (in the centre of the above image) has not yet developed the distinctive red wattle and facial skin of the adults
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Hornbills united
While the hornbills are distracted, the eagle leaps into the air, determined to finish what it came for.
Beating its wings powerfully, it flies straight at its target…
Although it is unclear exactly what happens next, it seems it forces the hornbill to release the spurfowl before landing in amongst the group.
As a result, the hornbills flare their wings in unison, hoping to drive off the unwelcome interloper.
Flap all you want
However, despite their best efforts, they fail to intimidate the determined scavenger. No amount of flapping is going to change the outcome.
Accordingly, it comes as no surprise to Gerrie when the eagle rises into the air, clutching the spurfowl victoriously. Dejected, there is nothing the hornbills can do but watch.
Maybe next time, they’ll work together to avoid a similar loss…
