Ceratogymna elata
Silhouette: Charles J. Sharp and T. Michael Keesey · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~50%
The yellow-casqued hornbill (Ceratogymna elata), also known as the yellow-casqued wattled hornbill, is found in the rainforest of coastal regions of West Africa, for example in Côte d'Ivoire. It is threatened by habitat loss.
The yellow-casqued hornbill is one of the largest birds of the West African forest, with adults weighing up to two kilograms (4+1⁄2 pounds). They live mainly in the forest canopy, rarely feeding on the ground. They live in small family groups containing at least one adult male and female, with one or two immature birds, though they sometimes gather in larger flocks to exploit a major food supply such as an ant or termite nest.
The birds are occasionally preyed upon by crowned hawk-eagles, and they respond to the presence of an eagle (sometimes indicated by its characteristic shriek) by mobbing – approaching it and emitting calls. Since the eagles depend on surprise to make a catch, this frequently causes them to leave the area. Recent research (Rainey et al., 2004) has shown that the birds respond in the same way to the alarm calls that Diana monkeys, which live in the same areas, emit if they notice an eagle, and that they can distinguish the calls made by the monkeys in the presence of eagles from those they make in the presence of leopards, which prey on the monkeys but not on the hornbills.
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Taï National Park | 🇨🇮 Ivory Coast | |
| 2 | Kakum National Park | 🇬🇭 Ghana |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Memphis Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Hong Kong Zoological and Botanical Gardens | 🇨🇳 China | |
| 3 | Aviary | 🇭🇰 Hong Kong SAR China | |
| 4 | Ocean Park Hong Kong | 🇨🇳 China |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Yellow-casqued Hornbill sighting in Kakum National Park on a given day, based on 56 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 148th most-seen of the 250 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 50%, if each day is a fresh chance.
January, March, May and July
In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Yellow-casqued Hornbill in Kakum National Park on a given day, against under 5% in September and November, the lowest months.
Between 7 and 10 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Yellow-casqued Hornbill sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
2nd of 2
Of the 2 parks where we can rate Yellow-casqued Hornbill sightings, Kakum National Park ranks 2nd at about 10%. The best odds are in Taï National Park (Ivory Coast, about 40%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Yellow-casqued Hornbill is recorded against all the birds logged in Kakum National Park (56 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
