KUNMING: Four rare Malabar pied hornbills have been spotted at a nature reserve in southwest China’s Yunnan Province, according to local authorities.
The Xiaoheishan Provincial Nature Reserve in Longling County said the birds were sighted by researchers during a field study in the nature reserve last October and have recently been identified as Malabar pied hornbills.
Han Lianxian, a zoologist with the Southwest Forestry University, said the hornbills have a scarce population and mainly inhabit evergreen broad-leaved forests in southwest China, feeding on fruits and insects.
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) classified the bird as a near-threatened species on the Red List of Threatened Species. –Agencies
