Tracy Aviary's popular new summer exhibit featuring two exotic great hornbill birds will end for the season Tuesday, Sept. 30.
Discussions and public feedings conducted by keepers of the great hornbills, scheduled daily at 3:15 p.m., will also end on Sept. 30, as will a "Color the Hornbill" coloring contest. The contest has been open to children 12 and younger.The yellow-billed residents, each with a large yellow casque, or "horn," atop their head, arrived at the aviary in January but were not available for public display until May.
More than 50,000 children and adults have watched the birds as they hopped, flew, "barked" and fed each other grapes and figs. Referred to as "courtship feeding," this behavior indicates a strong bonding among the great hornbills, raising hopes among aviary keepers that the birds will breed and nest next spring.
While the two great hornbills were raised by a private California breeder, their ancestors originated from the warmer climates of Thailand, India and Malaysia. Their inability to live outdoors during the winter in Utah prompts closure of the exhibit in late September, aviary officials said.