Tootsie
Toco Toucan (Ramphastos toco)
About me
| Basic Info | Home: | Hello there everyone! I'm commonly found on my tootsies in Central and South America, in countries such as Peru, Bolivia, Argentina and Brazil. |
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| Size: | Check out my beautiful, colourful bill! That alone measures around 20cm, the rest of my lovely plummage is about 40cm long. | |
| Favourite foods: | This gorgeous bill of mine comes in handy when plucking fruit, frogs, bird eggs and wee reptiles. Pluck! | |
| Environment: | Not too keen on the ol' forest environment, let me tell you. Much more of a fan of a more open plan space found at a forest edge or woodland. Although I hang out at the tops of trees these wings of mine aren't the best so I prefer hopping from tree to tree, it's so much easier. | |
| Sounds like: | RATTLE!! CLACK!! |
| Further Info |
No one really knows why a toucan's beak got quite so big and bright. Uses include allowing the bird to reach fruit at the end of branches, males may use them to ‘joust’ for territory and they may serve as a sign of health during mate selection. A recent study found that they are also used to help them to cool down, a bit like an elephants big ears. Toucans are egg layers nesting in tree holes. Their courtship involves preening and feeding fruit to each other. They female lays around 2-4 eggs that are incubated by both parents. Eggs hatch after 17-18 days and the chicks are looked after by the parents for up to 8 weeks before they fly off on their own. |
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