Genus: Pamphastos
Species: toco
The Toco Toucan is the largest of the toucans. It can get to about twenty-four to twenty six inches in length. Its bill is brightly colored orange and black and can get to about eight inches in length. The Toco Toucan weighs about ten to seventeen ounces. The Toucan's massive bill is not as heavy as it looks; it has a hard outside and a hollow inside. A bright blue patch of blue skin surrounds the eye.
A Toco Toucan has strong feet and toes to support its weight. Two toes point forward and two point backward. Its tongue is almost feather like and is six inches long. Its wings are short and rounded and it has a long broad tail. It's generally black with touches of white, scarlet and yellow. The Toco Toucan likes to live in open areas, lowland rainforests and palm groves of South America.
The Toco Toucan will mate at different times, depending on where they live. They breed once a year and have two to four shiny white eggs in a clutch. The incubation period is sixteen days. The Toco Toucan nestlings are born without feathers and are blind. These babies stay in their nest for about seven weeks. Both parents care for their young, protecting and feeding them. Scientists do not know how long toucans live in the wild.
Toucans usually live in pairs or groups called flocks. Their nests are in holes in trees. They talk to each other using toad likes noises. They take turns cleaning each other's feathers with their beaks.
The Toco Toucan's feather-like tongue helps move food along its bill. Its strong toes help it get a good grip on branches. The Toco Toucan has a very wide tail. It helps him stay balanced in the trees. The Toco Toucan eats fruit, seeds, insects, and spiders; steals eggs and nestlings from smaller birds. The Toco Toucan is a predator. It hunts lizards and snakes and steals eggs and nestlings from smaller birds. I can't find any sources about what eats the toco toucan. The Toco toucan is not endangered because it's able to adapt to man made habitats when the rainforests are destroyed.
by Drew K. 2001
Bibliography:
"Toco Toucan" Wildlife Explorer. USA: International Masters Publishers. 1998.
"Toucan" Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia 2000 1993-1999 edition
"The Toucan bird" http://www.blarb.net/~toucans/toucanbird.html 10/31/00