Bycanistes bucinator
Silhouette: Charles J. Sharp and T. Michael Keesey · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%
The trumpeter hornbill (Bycanistes bucinator) is a medium-sized hornbill, with length between 58 and 65 cm (23 and 26 in), characterized by a large grey casque on the bill, smaller in females. The eyes are brown or red, with pink surrounding skin. Body mass is between 0.45 and 1 kg (0.99 and 2.20 lb). It is similar to silvery-cheeked hornbill. Distinguishing features include an all-black back, white belly and white underwing coverts (in flight, wings present white tips), and red facial skin.
The trumpeter hornbill is a gregarious bird, usually living in groups of two to five individuals, although sometimes as many as fifty. This hornbill is a locally common resident of the tropical evergreen forests of Burundi, Mozambique, Botswana, Congo, North Pare Mountains of Tanzania, Kenya, the Caprivi strip of Namibia and eastern South Africa, where it feeds on fruits and large insects. Like other hornbills, the females incubate four to five white eggs while sealed in the nest compartment.
When they are kept and fed in captivity, they are tame, loving birds that can be taught a variety of tricks and enjoy companionship with their owner. They require large, spacious cages to move... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | uMkhuze Game Reserve | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 2 | iSimangaliso Wetland Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 3 | Kafue National Park | 🇿🇲 Zambia | |
| 4 | Lower Zambezi National Park | 🇿🇲 Zambia | |
| 5 | Mana Pools National Park | 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe | |
| 6 | Liwonde National Park | 🇲🇼 Malawi | |
| 7 | Meru National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 8 | Gonarezhou National Park | 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe | |
| 9 | Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 10 | Gorongosa National Park | 🇲🇿 Mozambique | |
| 11 | South Luangwa National Park | 🇿🇲 Zambia | |
| 12 | Kruger National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 13 | Mikumi National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 14 | Mkomazi National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 15 | Chobe National Park | 🇧🇼 Botswana | |
| 16 | Arusha National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 17 | Lake Manyara National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 18 | Hwange National Park | 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe | |
| 19 | Tsavo West National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 20 | Ngorongoro Conservation Area | 🇹🇿 Tanzania |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Trumpeter Hornbill sighting in Mikumi National Park on a given day, based on 18 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 154th most-seen of the 261 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 40%, if each day is a fresh chance.
June
In that month about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Trumpeter Hornbill in Mikumi National Park on a given day, against under 5% in March–April, August, October and December, the lowest months. That is one of Mikumi National Park's driest months, with about 15 mm of rain against 200 mm in April.
Between 7 and 10 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Trumpeter Hornbill sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
13th of 20
Of the 20 parks where we can rate Trumpeter Hornbill sightings, Mikumi National Park ranks 13th at about 10%. The best odds are in uMkhuze Game Reserve (South Africa, about 50%), iSimangaliso Wetland Park (South Africa, about 40%) and Kafue National Park (Zambia, about 40%). All parks ranked.
Same family: Bucerotidae
The closest relatives of the Trumpeter Hornbill that you can see in Mikumi National Park (family Bucerotidae, Hornbills) are African Grey Hornbill (about 30%), Pale-billed Hornbill (about 20%) and Crowned Hornbill (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Trumpeter Hornbill is recorded against all the birds logged in Mikumi National Park (18 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.
