African ground hornbill, Lake Manyara National Park, Tanzania

The ground hornbills are the only ground dwellers among hornbills. The large bill characteristic of the Bucerotidae family may be why hornbills are the only birds with the first two neck vertebrae (axis and atlas) fused together. Hornbills are notable for their long eyelashes and rather stubby legs and toes, with broad soles and the bases of the three front toes partly fused. The African Ground hornbill's throat skin is inflatable, and sometimes inflates when it makes its guttural call. The African ground hornbill, Bucorvus leadbeateri, inhabits the African savanna south of the equator. Ground hornbills prefer steppes and savannas with a fairly low grass growth, which makes the search for food easier. They have very large territories of about 100 sq. kilometers. This photograph was taken when Eliot Elisofon was on assignment for American Broadcasting Company and traveled to Africa from June 1966 to early August 1966.