Hornbill Bites Through Cage at HDB Corridor to Gruesomely Eat Pet Bird

By
Zhi Hao
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It appears that hornbills are at it again with their distinct cannibalistic tendencies:

A notion that’s surely a nightmare to any small bird owners, as well as the small birds themselves.

Hornbill Bites Through Cage at HDB Corridor to Gruesomely Eat Pet Bird

Yesterday (4 Apr), Facebook user Bobbytok Bob posted a somewhat disturbing video on the social media platform.

In the less-than-2-minute video clip, we see a hornbill perched surreptitiously atop a HDB handrail, as a number of bird cages line up around it.

It then gazes upon the horizon, as if to contemplate its next move.

Which is, unfortunately, not of the best intention.

Hopping in an almost playful manner, it sets its eyes on a particular bird cage on the far left.

Swoosh—and it’s suddenly on top of the cage.

As the birds flutter manically within their confines, the hornbill—an omnivorous creature that mainly feasts on fruits with the occasional insect or small animal in between—then steels its gaze and goes for the kill.

In one shot, the poor victim finds itself pressed against the wall of the cage, pulled harshly by the hornbill’s beak.

Another second, and the tiny bird’s out of the cage and into the predator’s “embrace”.

From thereon, the former could only struggle helplessly amidst a storm of flying feathers, as the latter takes its time with its prey.

Within seconds, the victim was dead and gone.

You can view the haunting video down below:

Sympathy

To date, the video has garnered over 984 shares and 173 comments.

While some netizens were sympathetic, others berated the cameraman for not lifting a finger to help.

“OMG!” one commented. “It ate the other bird? Why the hell would you just film this and not shoo the hornbill away? The caged bird would’ve been terrified! That is horrifying.”

Several were also critical towards the owner.

“OMG,” another wrote. “Why [did] the owner subject his beloved pets to such a horrible death?”

In light of the circumstances, one netizen has since recommended a stainless steel cage with good locks to keep hungry hornbills out.

Yet, despite the cruel murder in the video, one was quick to recognise the hornbill’s precision.

“Look at that precision of the hornbill,” the netizen wrote. “I’m impressed.”

Others also acknowledged the cruel reality in the video, and reasoned that it was simply a case of ‘nature’s law’.

Image: Facebook (Singapore Wildlife Sightings)

Previous Cases

Unfortunately, this is far from being the first time that a hornbill has ‘”murdered in cold blood”.

On 15 November 2020, a large Oriental Pied Hornbill was captured “toying” with a smaller bird.

Apparently, the hornbill was “shaking the poor bird as it went”.

And just one day before, on 14 November 2020, a hornbill was caught bothering the cage of a pet bird.

From the looks of it, it was attempting to pry the cage open with its beak.

It’s unclear, however, whether it was trying to get at the bird, or the fruit nestled within the cage.

Nevertheless, it should be noted that hornbills have devoured pet birds before.

And back in 2018, a hornbill was filmed “chomping” on a pet bird – later projected to be a Jambul Bird.

You can read more about hornbills here.

Feature Image: Facebook (Bobbytok Bob)

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Zhi Hao
Email: [email protected]