The Black-casqued Hornbill has a selectiveness towards the environment and resources when it comes to reproduction. It is a lowland specialist.[3] This organism will only start breeding and nesting when there is a large supply of fruits available, and in trees of larger size. When there are limited resources available, and may curtail nesting for years when there is a low availability of fruits(4).
It is the major
seed disperser for Durio graveolens, a species of
durian.[4] The connection is strong enough to reflect in some of the common names for the fruit: The
Kenyah and
Dayak peoples call it durian anggang (
lit. 'hornbill durian'),[5] and in
Malay it is called durian burong/durian burung[6] (lit. 'durian bird').[5] It also has a role in seed disbursement for Vitex pinnata.[7]
It is a frugivore, eating a wide range of fruits—over 50 species. It most commonly feeds on
figs and Vitex pinnata;[7] its diet includes Sterculia cordata and Durio graveolens.[3]
Description
The male has a yellowish bill while the female has a dark grey bill.
^O'Gara, E.; Guest, D. I.; Hassan, N. M. (2004).
"Occurrence, Distribution and Utilisation of Durian Germplasm"(PDF). In Drenth, A.; Guest, D. I. (eds.). Diversity and Management of Phytophthora in Southeast Asia ACIAR Monograph No. 114. Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR). pp. 187–193.
ISBN978-1-86320-405-7. Archived from
the original(PDF) on 19 February 2018. Retrieved 9 November 2017.
Stauffer, Donald J.; Smith, Thomas B. (2004). "Breeding and nest site characteristics of the Black-casqued Hornbill Ceratogymna atrata and White-thighed Hornbill Ceratogymna cylindricus in south-central Cameroon". Ostrich. 75 (3): 79–88.
doi:
10.2989/00306520409485418.
S2CID76654062.