Tockus deckeni
Silhouette: Andy Wilson · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~90% in a week >90%
Von der Decken's hornbill (Tockus deckeni) is a hornbill found in East Africa, especially to the east of the East African Rift, from Ethiopia south to Tanzania. It is found mainly in thorn scrub and similar arid habitats. Jackson's hornbill is often treated as a subspecies of it. It was named after the German explorer Baron Karl Klaus von der Decken (1833–1865).
This species is a small hornbill with blackish upperparts and mainly whitish underparts and head. It has a long tail and a long curved bill which lacks a casque. It is similar to the red-billed hornbill except for the bill colour and the lack of spotting on the wing coverts in both male and female.
The species shows sexual dimorphism; the female has a black bill, whereas the male has a red bill with a cream tip and a black cutting edge. During incubation, the female lays two or three white eggs in a tree hole, which is blocked off with a cement made of mud, droppings and fruit pulp. There is only one narrow aperture, just big enough for the male to transfer food to the mother and chicks.
When the chicks and the female are too big for the nest, the mother breaks out and rebuilds the wall. Then... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tarangire National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 2 | Tsavo West National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 3 | Mkomazi National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 4 | Tsavo East National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 5 | Ruaha National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 6 | Meru National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 7 | Samburu National Reserve | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 8 | Serengeti National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 9 | Lake Manyara National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 10 | Awash National Park | 🇪🇹 Ethiopia | |
| 11 | Amboseli National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 12 | Ngorongoro Conservation Area | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 13 | Mikumi National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 14 | Masai Mara National Reserve | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 15 | Nairobi National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Busch Gardens Tampa | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | San Diego Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | National Zoological Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | ZooParc de Beauval | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 5 | SeaWorld Abu Dhabi | 🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates | |
| 6 | Antwerp Zoo | 🇧🇪 Belgium | |
| 7 | North Carolina Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Parc des oiseaux | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 9 | Hodonín Zoo | 🇨🇿 Czechia | |
| 10 | Minnesota Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 11 | Living Desert Zoo and Gardens | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 12 | Bronx Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 13 | Kansas City Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 14 | Badoca Safari Park | 🇵🇹 Portugal | |
| 15 | Los Angeles Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 16 | The Maryland Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 17 | Oklahoma City Zoo and Botanical Garden | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 18 | Woodland Park Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 19 | Calgary Zoo | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 20 | Night Safari | 🇸🇬 Singapore | |
| 21 | ZooTampa | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 22 | Indianapolis Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 23 | Singapore Zoo | 🇸🇬 Singapore | |
| 24 | Wilhelma | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 25 | Belfast Zoo | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 26 | Allwetterzoo Münster | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 27 | Münster Zoo | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 28 | Zoo Opole | 🇵🇱 Poland | |
| 29 | San Antonio Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 30 | Great Plains Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 31 | Hanover Zoo | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 32 | Zoologischer Garten Magdeburg | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 33 | Schönbrunn Zoo | 🇦🇹 Austria | |
| 34 | Hogle Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 35 | Łódź Zoo | 🇵🇱 Poland | |
| 36 | London Zoo | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 37 | Ouwehands Dierenpark | 🇳🇱 Netherlands | |
| 38 | Bird Paradise | 🇸🇬 Singapore | |
| 39 | Plock Zoo | 🇵🇱 Poland | |
| 40 | Rainforest Wild Asia | 🇸🇬 Singapore | |
| 41 | John Ball Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 42 | Affen- und Vogelpark Eckenhagen | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 43 | Buffalo Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 44 | Reserva Zoológica Oasys MiniHollywood | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 45 | Vogelpark Avifauna | 🇳🇱 Netherlands | |
| 46 | Eskişehir Zoo | 🇹🇷 Türkiye | |
| 47 | Giraffe House | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 48 | Discovery Cove | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 49 | River Wonders | 🇸🇬 Singapore | |
| 50 | Henry Vilas Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States |
Likely
About 50% of wildlife watchers report a Von der Decken's Hornbill sighting in Ruaha National Park on a given day, based on 142 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 18th most-seen of the 276 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 90%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
September
In that month about 70% of wildlife watchers report a Von der Decken's Hornbill in Ruaha National Park on a given day, against about 30% in January, the lowest month. That is one of Ruaha National Park's driest months, with almost no rain against 180 mm in January.
Between noon and 3 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Von der Decken's 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.
5th of 15
Of the 15 parks where we can rate Von der Decken's Hornbill sightings, Ruaha National Park ranks 5th at about 50%. The best odds are in Tarangire National Park (Tanzania, about 70%), Tsavo West National Park (Kenya, about 60%) and Mkomazi National Park (Tanzania, about 60%). All parks ranked.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Von der Decken's Hornbill is recorded against all the birds logged in Ruaha National Park (142 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.
