One of the most beautiful and magnificent birds that I have ever seen. Sadly a near threatened species. The Malabar Pied Hornbill has mainly black plumage apart from its white belly, throat patch, tail sides and trailing edge to the wings. The bill is yellow with a large, mainly black casque. Females have white orbital skin which is not there in case of Males. 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 the chicks. When the chicks have grown too large for the mother to fit in the nest with them, the mother breaks out and rebuilds the wall, after which both parents feed the chicks.