The famous colorful bird in the movie 'The Lion King' is about to become extinct

Global warming is reducing the effective reproductive capacity of the southern yellow-billed hornbill, a bird commonly found in dry woodland and scrub areas in South Africa. On a hunting trip, you may come across a red-yellow hornbill like the character Zazu from the movie The Lion King. In this animated musical, he is Simba's most trusted advisor.

First author of the study, Dr Nicholas Pattinson, of the University of Cape Town, says there is growing evidence of the negative effects of high temperatures on behaviour, physiology, reproduction as well as survival. birds, mammals and reptiles of the world. Heat-related mass deaths in a short period of only a few days are increasingly being recorded, which is certainly a threat to the survival of the population and the function of the ecosystem. . Pattinson's team studied a population of golden hornbills at the Kuruman River Reserve in the southern Kalahari Desert between 2008 and 2019. This data was collected exclusively from breeding pairs in nesting boxes. wooden.

The effects of high temperatures have reduced the hornbills' chances of breeding.

Similar phenomena have also been identified from analyzes of long-term trends and individual breeding efforts. During the follow-up period, the lethal effects of high temperatures - including compromised feeding, supply and maintenance of body mass - reduced the chances of successful reproduction, Pattinson said. or even the survival of hornbills. This bird tends to be monogamous and in breeding pairs or small family groups. 

They have a very distinctive cluck-cluck sound. When a bird begins to chirp, soon the whole group joins in to create a chirping symphony of birdsong. Its cry is also mixed with whistling, grunting and grinding teeth.

This is one of the first significant studies on the impact of the climate crisis on population-scale livestock success over a longer period of time. Global warming is exacerbating the most extreme conditions in the world's arid regions, increasing the frequency and intensity of droughts. The animals that live in these areas have suffered the consequences. Many species of birds are affected, which breed earlier and in a shorter period of time.

There is growing evidence of the negative effects of high temperatures on the behavior, physiology, reproduction and survival of various birds, mammals and reptiles around the world. . Mass deaths are certainly a threat to the survival of populations and the functioning of ecosystems.

The yellow-billed hornbill is a cavity-nesting species. Females lock themselves in and stay there for an average of 50 days to incubate and care for their offspring after hatching. The male will feed the female and the young through a narrow longitudinal opening. This nesting pattern is a form of self-protection from predators and reproductive success depends largely on other factors such as climate and food availability.

The southern yellowbill may soon be wiped out by 2027. 

Yellow-billed hornbills will begin breeding in response to rainfall, which corresponds to the hottest days of the year. This makes it difficult for them to change spawn dates beyond the hottest times. When comparing the first three seasons between 2008 and 2011 with the final three seasons from 2016 to 2019, the average rate of nesting boxes fell from 52% to 12%.

Successful rearing and the appearance of at least one hatchling was reduced from 58% to 17%, and the average number of chicks born per mating decreased from 1.1% to 0.4% . No successful breeding attempts were recorded when the air temperature was above 35.7 degrees Celsius. 

The hottest days produce negative consequences for livestock production, effects that occur even in years without drought. The findings highlight the rapid pace and the unfolding climate crisis is having devastating effects on particular species in an alarmingly short period of time.

Current warming projections for the yellow-billed hornbill suggest that the bird's breeding success threshold will be broken during the entire rainy season around 2027. Much of the public perception. them on the impacts of the climate crisis in relation to the scenarios calculated for 2050 and beyond. However, the effects of the climate crisis are still present and can manifest not only for a certain period of time but even for generations of people's lives. 

Although no significant fatal events have been recorded, the predictions in this study suggest that southern yellowbills could be wiped out from the hottest parts of their range as early as possible. 2027. This could lead to local extinctions, directly caused by no new chicks joining the population, and would alter the ecosystems on which we depend.