The southern yellow-billed hornbill (Tockus leucomelas), unlike its cousins, does not have a large casque over its bill. It is found in southern Africa from Angola through Namibia to Zambia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Malawi, northern and eastern South Africa and southwestern Mozambique. Yellow-billed hornbills feed mainly on the ground, where they forage for seeds, small insects, spiders and scorpions. It is mainly an omnivorous ground feeder, eating small insects, spiders, seeds and occasionally fruit. The species is known to forage co-operatively with dwarf mongoose, catching prey items that the mongoose scratch up from the ground. They nest in holes in trees, and like other hornbills, the female seals herself in until the young are old enough to begin feeding themselves. They use millipedes in their nests, and it is thought that secretions from the insects might help protect the mother and young from bacteria.
