Gone for 60 Years, Indian Grey Hornbills Return to Gir — What It Reveals About the Forest

For the fourth year in a row, Indian grey hornbills have bred successfully in Gujarat’s Gir landscape. It is a milestone that represents much more than the return of a single bird.

The species had vanished from Gir sometime between the 1950s and 1960s. Today, after a carefully planned reintroduction programme, the hornbills are nesting, raising chicks and establishing territories once again. Around 40 birds were released in phases between 2021 and 2023, and scientists now say the population is showing signs of becoming self-sustaining.

For conservationists, this is a reason to celebrate.

For the rest of us, it is also a reminder that some birds reveal the health of an entire forest. Hornbills are among them. If they are growing, chances are the forest is too.

A bird that refuses to settle for less

Unlike many birds that can adapt to fragmented landscapes, hornbills are incredibly choosy about where they live.

They need mature forests with giant native trees. They need tree cavities large enough for nesting. They need fruiting trees that produce food across different seasons. Most importantly, they need forests that have remained connected over large areas.

Take away any one of these ingredients, and hornbills struggle.

That is why scientists describe them as indicator species. Their presence tells researchers that a forest still has the structure, diversity, and ecological balance needed to support a wide range of wildlife.

The Gir reintroduction worked not only because birds were released into the wild. Years of habitat restoration, protection, and monitoring made sure the landscape could once again support them.

The birds that plant tomorrow’s forests

Hornbills are sometimes called the ‘farmers of the forest’.

The title is well earned.

Most hornbill species feed on fruits, especially figs, berries, and other large forest fruits. Many of these seeds are too large for smaller birds to disperse.

After feeding, they can fly several kilometres before dropping or regurgitating the seeds. The seeds land far away from the parent tree, reducing competition and giving new saplings a better chance to grow.

Over time, this helps forests regenerate naturally.

Researchers across India’s Western Ghats and northeast have shown that hornbills are among the most important long-distance seed dispersers in tropical forests. Without them, several native tree species would struggle to spread.

A family life built on trust

Hornbills have one of the most surprising nesting strategies in the bird world.

When breeding begins, the female enters a hollow in a large tree trunk. Together, the pair seals the entrance with mud, fruit pulp, and droppings, leaving behind only a narrow slit.

She remains imprisoned inside for weeks.

The male becomes the family’s only provider, delivering fruits and food through the tiny opening every day until the chicks are old enough.

It is an extraordinary survival strategy, but it comes with one condition. The tree must survive. If an old nesting tree is cut down, an entire breeding season can be lost. This is another reason hornbills depend so heavily on ancient forests filled with mature trees that have developed natural cavities over decades.

Why old trees matter more than we realise

When forests are restored, young saplings usually receive most of the attention.

But for hornbills, old trees are irreplaceable.

Large trees provide nesting hollows, shade, food, and shelter for countless birds, mammals, reptiles, and insects. Many develop cavities naturally only after decades of growth.

Once these giants disappear, replacing them is not something that can happen overnight.

The return of hornbills to Gir suggests that enough of these ecological building blocks now exist for the birds to breed successfully again. That is encouraging not only for hornbills but for many other forest species that share the same habitat.

When one species helps many others

The Gir programme did not focus solely on releasing birds. Forest officials tracked their movements, restored suitable habitat, and monitored breeding success while involving local communities in protecting the landscape. The latest findings suggest the birds have settled into the landscape and are breeding much like a wild population would.

This is an important change.

Wildlife conservation is measured by counting individual animals. But true success comes when those animals begin reproducing on their own and no longer depend on constant human intervention.

That appears to be happening in Gir.

More than a comeback story

India is home to nine species of hornbills, from the Indian grey hornbill seen across the plains to the striking great hornbill of the Western Ghats and northeast.

Many face growing pressure from habitat loss, the disappearance of old nesting trees, and fragmented forests. Their future depends on something unusually simple.

• Protect large forests.
• Protect old trees.
• Protect the natural links that allow wildlife to move freely.

When hornbills disappear, forests lose one of their greatest gardeners. When they return, they bring back far more than their distinctive calls.

They carry seeds across the landscape. They help forests renew themselves. And they remind us that healthy ecosystems are built slowly, over decades, through relationships between trees, birds, and the countless other species that depend on one another.

That is why the recent breeding success in Gir is about much more than a bird making a comeback after 60 years. It is a sign that when forests are given the chance to recover, nature knows exactly how to heal itself.

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