There’s a mystery unfolding in Delhi’s Lodhi Garden—Grey and pied hornbills are co-parenting |
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There’s a mystery unfolding in Delhi’s Lodhi Garden—Grey and pied hornbills are co-parenting
Retired school principal, Anu Mathur, shared pictures of an unusual phenomenon on her birding Whatsapp group. It has flummoxed birders and scientists across India.
A mystery came to light in Delhi on Tuesday, 12 May 2026. The characters—three amateur birders, two Indian Grey Hornbills and one Pied Hornbill.
Anu Mathur, a retired school principal and amateur birder, was walking in Delhi’s Lodhi Garden, while her husband played golf in a club nearby. Mathur had come equipped with a Nikon P 1000, just in case she saw something of interest. It was a perfectly ordinary morning by any standards.
Around 8.30 am, she noticed two Indian Grey Hornbills, Ocyceros birostris, sitting on the branch of a tree. This was also no surprise—these birds thrive on old, tall trees, still found in and around Lodhi Garden. But what piqued her interest was their nest. It is unusual to see a nesting hornbill this easily. She watched.
Hornbills put themselves through a lot of hardship to breed. The nest is usually a hole in a tree. The female seals herself in, save for a narrow slit. She sits squeezed inside till her chicks hatch. The male feeds her through the slit every few hours for a few months. Then, when the chicks appear, their........