Kohima: The Nagaland Community Conserved Areas Forum (NCCAF) wants your help mapping the state’s hornbill population. Teaming up with the Nature Conservation Foundation, the forum is tracking nesting sites, roosting areas, and general sightings to better understand where these birds live.
Hornbills act as vital seed dispersers, keeping Nagaland’s forests healthy and growing. Much of the data currently sits trapped in individual notebooks or local memories. The forum aims to change that. They want photographs, GPS coordinates, and historical records of where these birds once nested. Experts are not required for this project. "You do not have to be a bird expert," the group stated.
The initiative draws from the successful Hornbill Nest Adoption Programme in Arunachal Pradesh. That project helped over 200 chicks survive through local community oversight. In Nagaland, the forum plans to identify sites for protection and may even explore artificial nest structures where natural cavities are in short supply. Any field work on private or clan land requires formal approval from village authorities.
Privacy concerns remain a priority. The NCCAF guaranteed that exact nest locations will stay confidential. They also promised the project is not a gateway for legal trouble regarding past hunting activities. "A photograph or GPS location is far more valuable than disturbing a nest to obtain a closer look," the forum warned. They explicitly cautioned the public against climbing trees or getting too close to nesting cavities.
Interested contributors should send location data, dates, and media to +91 9862000975 via WhatsApp. Alternatively, reports can be emailed to nagalandccaforum@gmail.com or nccaf@outlook.com. Provide your name and village along with any photos or videos of the birds.
Updated at 26th August 2026 at 10:00am
NCCAF chairman Heirang Lungalang and secretary Seve R Vadeo are heading the effort. They are now specifically asking for reports on feeding and roosting areas, repeated sightings of pairs or family groups, and media showing breeding behavior. Contributors are also asked to include the time of the sighting and the species name if they know it.
The forum is opening the call for data to a wider net, including village councils, conservation groups, students, and researchers. They clarified that their data collection is meant to help pinpoint where to prioritize protection, monitor breeding sites, and identify specific threats to nesting and feeding grounds.
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