Observations of southern ground-hornbill Bucorvus leadbeateri grooming common warthog Phacochoerus africanus

摘要

Interspecific grooming behaviour between terrestrial mammals and birds is considered sufficiently rare to be worth reporting (Ruggiero & Eves, 1998). It involves a gleaning action in which one participant (the host) is groomed by members of another unrelated species (the groomers) (Dean & Macdonald, 1981). The most common and widespread example of such behaviour involves oxpeckers (Buphagus species) removing ectoparasites from large mammals (Hart, Hart & Mooring, 1990).