Hornbills

• Hornbills are a family of tropical and sub-tropical birds which are found extensively in Africa, Asia and Melanesia. 
• Famously dubbed the ‘Farmers of the Forest’, these frugivores help in seed dispersal of several endemic trees and are important for survival and upkeep of entire forests.
• In India, 9 subspecies of hornbills are found. They are: The Great Hornbill, Rufous-necked Hornbill, Wreathed Hornbill, Narcondam Hornbill, Malabar Pied Hornbill, Oriental Pied Hornbill, White-throated Brown Hornbill, Malabar Grey Hornbill, and the Indian Grey Hornbill.
• Among them, the Great hornbill is the largest species in the country.  
• Five species are found in the north- eastern states of which the Wreathed hornbill, Rufous-necked hornbill and the White- throated brown hornbill are restricted to this region within India, although they have a wider distribution in South-east Asia. 
• The Narcondam hornbill is found only on Narcondam island in the Bay of Bengal. 
• The Indian grey hornbill occurs in the Indian subcontinent, while the Malabar Pied hornbill is found only in India and Sri Lanka. 
• The Malabar grey hornbill is endemic to the Western Ghats.

Papum Reserve Forest (RF)

• It is an Important Bird Area (IBA) in Arunachal Pradesh.
• It lies adjacent to Pakke Tiger Reserve of Arunachal Pradesh. This forest typically contains Sub-tropical Dry Evergreen and Semi-evergreen Forests, while the higher areas are under Subtropical Broadleaf Hill Forest cover.
• It is very special to the Hornbill population as this reserve forest is home to 3 hornbills subspecies; i.e. Great, Wreathed and Oriental Pied. 

Why in the news?

• In the last 5 years (2013-2017), the papum reserve forest has declined by 24% of its total forest area. Annually this forest is losing upto 8 sq.km. 
• Illegal logging, deforestation, ethnic conflicts, agricultural expansion, conversion to plantations etc. have caused the hornbill population of the region to decline in drastic ways.
• The hornbills are hunted here by local tribes for using their beaks and feathers to use them as headgear. There has been a push to promote synthetic feathers and beaks among these tribes so that they stop hunting hornbill species.
• Experts have been asking to promote conservation and maintenance of these forests to conserve these hornbill species. 

References:

1. http://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/papum-reserve-forest-iba-india
2. https://www.ncf-india.org/eastern-himalaya/hornbill-watch#:~:text=Hornbills%20in%20India&text=The%20Narcondam%20hornbill%20is%20found,endemic%20to%20the%20Western%20Ghats.
3. https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/forest-cover-loss-threatens-hornbills-in-arunachal/article32339946.ece#:~:text=Papum%20RF%20is%20a%20nesting,Great%2C%20Wreathed%20and%20Oriental%20Pied.&text=The%20ecologists%20assessed%20the%20habitat,around%2029%20hornbill%20nest%20trees.