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Toucan


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Toucan
Toucan
Toucan
Toucan
Toucan
The toucan is a medium-sized bird native to the rain forests of central and South America and the Caribbean. There are more than 40 different species of toucan that inhabit the South American jungles today.

The toucan is best known for it's large colourful beak that despite it's large size, is surprisingly light due to the fact that it is made of a substance called keratin (the same substance that makes up the nails and hair of many animals including humans) . The toucan's beak measures around half the toucans body length and is used for mating, feeding and defence purposes. The toucan's bill however, is not particularly strong and so it is used more to intimidate predators rather than to fight them off.

The toucan only has small wings as it dwells in forests and therefore do not need to travel large distances. The toucan's wingspan is roughly the same length as the toucans body. Although the toucan is able to fly, the toucan is not very good at flying and cannot be in the air for very long. Instead of using their wings to get around, the toucan hops between the tree branches using it curved toes and sharp claws to get a good grip on the narrow surface that it holds on to.

Toucans are omnivorous birds and feed on a mixture of plants and animals. Toucans eat fruits, berries, nuts and seeds along with eggs, insects and small mammals and reptiles. The primary source of food for the toucan is the fruit which grows on the trees where the toucan lives.

Toucans have a number of predators in the South American jungle including humans, large birds of prey and wild cats. Weasels, snakes and rats tend to prey more on the eggs of the toucan rather than the toucan itself (many small animals are generally intimidated by the toucan's large bill).

Although toucans are generally solitary when feeding, toucans often live in small groups of around 6 or 7 birds. The bright colours of the toucan gives the toucan camouflage in the colourful rainforest canopy. However, due to their bright colours, toucans are often captured and sold as pets with toucans being popular animals in the exotic pet trade.

Toucans build their nest in trees in lay around 3 eggs. When the toucan chicks hatch, both the male toucan and the female toucan help to feed them and protect them from predators. The toucan chicks are born with small beaks that don't reach their full size for at least a few months.

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Toucan Comments (21)

toucan fan xoxo

"i thought this website was amazing but i would of liked to see what defense mechanism a toucan uses. this website is good i am using it to get information on my project on toucans. the information is very simple formed but detailed in the same way i hope to be using it on other animals i am enjoying this project "

olivia 11

"Great it helped me with my project in 2010 we had to do a sculpture and get information."

Roxy

"the facts are great the only thing i would have liked to know is about their protection from the enviroment and more about hoe they obtain their food. But other then that I thought it was an amazing article and helped lots."

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Toucan Facts

Kingdom:
A level of classifying all living things on earth, as similar species are broken into 5 groups including plants, animals and fungi....
Animalia
Phylum:
A level of classifying animals within the animal kingdom. Phylum are further divided into subgroups called classes....
Chordata
Class:
A level of classifying animals in a phylum. Classes are then sub-divided into further groups known as orders....
Aves
Order:
A level used to classify animals. Classes are broken into sub-groups known as order, which are broken down further into families....
Piciformes
Family:
A level of classifying animals within an order. Orders are broken down in families and families are broken down further into smaller groups called genus....
Ramphastidae
Genus:
A level of classifying animals within a family. Families are divided into sub-groups called genus which generally contain one or two animal species....
Ramphastos
Scientific Name:Ramphastos Toco
Type:Bird
Diet:Omnivore
Size (H):29cm - 63cm (11.5in - 29in)
Wing Span:50cm - 119cm (20in - 47in)
Weight:130g - 680g (4.6oz - 24oz)
Top Speed:64km/h (39mph)
Life Span:12 - 20 years
Lifestyle:Solitary
Conservation Status:
The conservation status of a species is an indicator of the likelihood of that species remaining extant either in the present day or the near future. Many factors are taken into account when assessing the conservation s...
Least Concern
Colour:White, Yellow, Orange, Black
Skin Type:Feathers
Favourite Food:Fruit
Habitat:
The term habitat is used to describe a specific area where a particular animal lives, within an environment. Many animals have adapted to requiring specific conditions which can only be found in their natural habitat su...
Lowland rainforest and tropical forest borders
Average Clutch Size:3
Main Prey:
When an animal is referred to prey, it means that the animal is either hunted or caught for food. Animals that are referred to as prey are generally hunted by bigger animals, although there are a number of exceptions....
Fruit, Eggs, Insects
Predators:
When an animal is referred to as a predator, it means that the animal either hunts or catches other animals. Predatory animals are generally dominant within their environment and will generally hunt animals smaller than...
Human, Weasels, Large Birds
Distinctive Features:Small body and enormous colourful beak

Related Animals

Keel Billed ToucanKeel Billed Toucan
It's beak can reach nearly 20 cm long!

 

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