Why does a toucan have a big beak. The most interesting thing in the life of a toucan is birds with a large beak. Toucan Beak Design Secrets

The beak is what first of all draws attention to itself in the form of a toucan. Disproportionately huge (almost half the length of the bird's body), painted in flashy bright red shades, not inferior in exotic plumage color, it has long haunted researchers.

Despite its impressive size, the beak does not greatly burden the bird, since it is very light due to the air cavities inside it: in structure it resembles a frozen foam. As a result, the toucan's beak weighs "only" 5% of its body weight (which in the case of a human is analogous to a 4-kilogram weight tied to the face). Inside, it is a set of tiny hexagonal tiles glued together and arranged similarly to roof tiles. The width of the tile is equal to the diameter of a human hair (50 micrometers), the thickness is only 1 micrometer. This structure makes the beak particularly strong and at the same time incredibly light.

However, for the same reason, the beak cannot serve as a defense against enemies for a toucan - it is too light for this. If it were as powerful as the beak of a woodpecker or a parrot, no predators would be afraid of the toucan, but then it would not only be able to fly, but also just sit - it would constantly stick its beak into the ground. However, the toucan cannot boast of the grace of flight either: due to its rather large body weight and large beak, it flies rather clumsily and prefers a short gliding flight.

Why nature endowed the toucan with such a huge beak is still, frankly, unknown to science.

Charles Darwin suggested that "toucans may have a huge beak due to sexual selection in order to show other birds their varied and bright stripes that adorn this organ." In other words, he believed that a huge bright beak could be a means of attracting individuals of the opposite sex. However, this assumption is debatable, since toucans lack sexual dimorphism - both females and males are equally brightly colored, so the possession of any "architectural excesses" (that is, traits that are not useful for direct survival) is completely useless to them (biologically inappropriate ).

Later, ornithologists agreed that the toucan needed a long beak in order to get berries from the tips of thin twigs that could not withstand the half-kilogram weight of the bird. Reaching for the berry, the toucan holds it in its beak thanks to the sawtooth notches at its end.

This hypothesis, however, despite its plausibility, has not been tested in practice. There is no research on how much toucans generally tend to get berries from distant thin branches. Meanwhile, it is not clear why then the toucans have a very short neck, although for the purpose attributed to the beak of a toucan, a combination with a long neck would be more appropriate. In addition, if it is easier to get a distant berry with such a beak, then the food that is right under the nose is already much more difficult to pick up - for this you need to move away from it! What perishing here feasibility!

Recent studies have shown that the toucan's beak has another important function: due to the fact that it is abundantly supplied with blood vessels, the toucan's beak serves to regulate the bird's heat exchange in hot tropical climates, helping to cool the body. Moreover, the toucan's beak does not just passively radiate heat: the toucan is able to regulate blood flow to the beak. The effect is especially noticeable at sunset, when toucans “dump” heat into their beaks in a matter of minutes, lowering body temperature during sleep.

Using thermal imagers, the scientists found that the toucan's beak plays the role of an air conditioner or radiator.
In hot weather or during flight, the beak quickly heats up and gives off heat, preventing the bird from overheating.
At such moments, he takes up to 100% of the heat coming from the body. During the cold period, only 5% of body heat enters the beak.

However, the authors of this study are very cautious about origin large beaks of toucans: the hypothesis that toucans acquired an impressive beak to solve problems of thermoregulation looks rather doubtful. After all, other birds, including tropical ones, solve the problem of overheating without special "radiator" organs: they simply open their beaks and spread their wings. Moreover: toucans do the same! It is even more incomprehensible why toucans had to grow beaks to cool themselves during the flight, if they are terrible flyers ... despite the fact that the huge size of the beak makes this very flight difficult ...

The role of the bright coloration of the beak is even less clear, but it is obvious that such a contrasting spot unmasks the bird and makes it more visible to enemies. The version of some researchers that the beak serves to intimidate the toucan does not stand up to criticism, since crested eagles hunting toucans are not at all embarrassed by their beaks.

It is clear that despite the advantages that are visible and not yet known to us, the beak gives the toucan much more inconvenience, not only in flight and other movements, but also for food, for which, according to many scientists, everything was conceived: after all, pecking fruit with such a beak not very convenient due to the fact that the range of motion of such a design is significantly reduced; even small fruits and berries toucans are forced to eat in two steps, using juggling skills with each swallow: first they take a portion of food with the tip of their beak, and then they toss it up and swallow it on the fly. The classic size of the beak is much more convenient for grabbing, cleaning, and crushing food.

But, despite all these inconveniences, the genus of toucans thrives in the wild, which means that it is perfectly adapted to living conditions - either due to, or in spite of its exotic appearance.

Even those people who are not at all versed in the types of birds, and do not know which bird looks like, can easily recognize a representative of the toucan family. Toucans live in the lowland and mountainous tropical forests of North and South America, usually in tree cavities. Most birds of this family have a disproportionately large beak. It is usually very brightly colored.

The beak of toucans reaches about half the length of the bird's body. This “tool” looks very heavy and uncomfortable, but in fact it is not. There are many pneumatic cavities inside the huge beak, so it is light. But the toucan's beak is not only light, but also very strong. This is a real miracle of nature, one of the best engineering "projects" in the animal world.

Such a beak even looks a little threatening. But the bird itself does not pose any threat to anyone (except for the beast that attacked the chicks). Toucans are herbivorous birds that feed on berries and fruits. A toucan needs a large beak in order to pick fruits from thin branches that cannot support the weight of a bird. Due to the long beak, the toucan can reach the fruit, which hangs out of reach for most other herbivorous birds. Toucans are also engaged in throwing berries - and here a large and tenacious beak comes in handy.

In order to make the fruits easier to hold and open, notches are located at the end of the beak. Helps in this "work" and a long and sticky tongue. A number of experts believe that the toucan's large and bright beak helps it find relatives, announcing its own presence.

When a person sees a toucan, most often the question arises of how this bird sleeps. How can you sleep with such a beak? The answer is simple. The bird is resting in a deep hollow, I will throw my beak on my back. He fits in there perfectly. The tail folds over the chest, and the large toucan turns into a medium-sized feathered ball.

Beak design

As mentioned above, the beak of a toucan is not at all as heavy as it might seem. The beak is very strong, but it is made of a lightweight material with a large number of pneumatic cavities. The study of the beak of a toucan is carried out not only by ornithologists, but also by scientists of other specialties, for example, materials scientists. The beak was best studied by Mark Andre Meyers, a materials scientist at the University of California.

He discovered that top part the beak consists of bone tissue and membranes. Something similar could be created from foam, which can quickly harden. This bone "foam" is located between the outer layers of keratin. This substance, for example, is part of our nails. The "foamy" structure of the toucan's beak ensures its strength and lightness. The outer layer of bone tissue is a collection of many layers of small hexagonal tiles. The width of the tile is about 50 µm and the thickness is about 1 µm. The bone material is covered on top with keratin scales fastened together.

The surface of the beak of a toucan is covered with several layers of keratin plates.

Materials scientist Mark Meyers ran computer simulations and found that the design of the toucan's beak is nearly perfect. "It's as if the toucan had a deep knowledge of mechanical engineering," says Myers. “Another big surprise is that the two-layer beak structure creates a high impact energy absorption system.” The structure of the beak is a bit like the internal structure of human bones. But the bones do not have that “bone foam” that is in the beak of a bird.

Recently, the toucan's beak helps the bird regulate its body temperature. It works on the principle of a car radiator. When it gets hot, the toucan's beak heats up very quickly, taking on body heat. Excess thermal energy then dissipates in the air.

In the beak of toucans a large number of blood vessels. Using a special mechanism, the bird can increase or restrict blood flow. As a result, in the heat, the body of the bird is cooled, and when it becomes cold, the body heat is retained.

Having studied the structural features of the beak of toucans, the specialists began to develop durable and lightweight materials with a structure similar to the structure of the beak of a toucan. Such materials can be successfully used in industry. For example, to make an efficient and reliable bumper for a car or a light and durable part for an airplane.

The study of the structural features of the beak of toucans is still ongoing. And who knows, perhaps scientists will be able to reveal more than one secret of this wonderful tool.

When you first see a toucan in a photo or in life, you can involuntarily feel sorry for him. Why, in what punishment, nature provided her with such a huge, hypertrophied beak, which looks completely disproportionate in relation to the body of the bird. However, everything is not so scary, this is a deceptive impression. It turns out that the seemingly wide, massive and heavy beak is not at all like that. The presence of many air cavities invisible to the eye makes it light, almost weightless and at the same time durable.

By the way, the shape of the beak changes with the age of the bird. In chicks, the lower part protrudes above the upper. The fact is that parents, trying to feed their children, throw food up, and this feature of the structure of the beak helps the chicks catch food.

Some resemblance of a toucan to parrots should not be misleading. The bird belongs to the woodpecker order and has more than thirty species. And she can only pronounce one word, similar to her name. So, we can say that the bird came up with a name for itself.

Appearance of a toucan

It is the bright, multi-colored beak that makes the toucan an elegant, attractive bird. By typing on the Internet: toucans, photos and videos, everyone can be convinced of their exotic uniqueness, as bright representatives of the inhabitants of the tropics.

habitats

The natural habitat for toucans are South and Central America. It cannot be said that the toucan is a rare bird, this applies only to some of the entire variety of species. Tropical forests rich in food are a comfortable habitat for toucans and allow maintaining the population at a sufficient level.

Some species of toucans have chosen dense forests as their habitat (but not thickets, but light glades), others prefer moist light forests, these birds are found in city gardens and parks. In cities located in the range of these birds, their representatives can be found right on the streets, like a dove in middle lane Russia. There are species of toucans that lead a nomadic lifestyle, but their movements are not far and are limited to flights to and from mountainous regions.

Lifestyle

Toucan birds are sedentary preferring not to relocate. This species is not very fond of flying, preferring to move in short hops.

Toucans cannot be called individualists; these birds prefer to stick together, breaking into pairs only during the mating season. Such collectivism helps individuals who are in trouble survive, the rest of the flock does not fly away, but seeks to help their friend get rid of trouble, making such a fuss that the offender of the bird prefers to “get away”.

Birds are diurnal, being active during daylight hours and resting at night.

Main habitat- branches of trees. Toucans descend to the ground at moments of emergency and do it reluctantly. The bird flies heavily and cannot stay in the air for long.

The diet of the toucan bird is mostly vegetarian. Toucans willingly feast on nuts, juicy sweet berries, tropical fruits, palm fruits. But sometimes they can afford to eat animal food - eggs of other birds, snakes, lizards, insects.

The voice of the toucan is loud, shrill and can be heard at a great distance. At various kinds toucan voices differ from each other: from the croaking of a frog to the yapping of a puppy. And yet, for most of them, they are consonant with the name of the bird. The toucan is also good at snapping its beak loudly.

reproduction

Toucans are monogamous birds. Having chosen their partners once, they remain faithful to each other. The mating season happens once a year. At this time, the couple tends to occupy a ready-made nest, which is usually a hollow, because it will not be easy for them to build a new one with their beak. Sometimes a couple settles in empty termite mounds or depressions in the soil. Since it is not always possible to find free suitable housing, conflicts also occur. Sometimes toucans can evict uninvited guests from the nest, which they consider their own, although usually toucans are friendly and calm birds.

Females lay from 1 to 4 eggs with a white-shiny shell. Incubation of chicks lasts 2 weeks in small species, in large species - a little longer, and both parents participate in this in turn. Sometimes other members of the team, for some reason left without their masonry, also provide assistance in incubation. They do not leave their wards during the period of feeding. Chicks are born completely naked and blind, devoid of all plumage, and appearance their beak differs from the shape of the nose of adult birds. For some time (usually 1.5-2 months), the chicks need to get stronger, acquire feathers, after which, under the guidance of their parents, they will begin to comprehend the outside world.

Enemies

Toucans don't have many natural enemies, but they are. These include tree boas, large birds of prey, some representatives of the cat family. Their bright appearance disguises them in the colors of tropical forests; quick wit, caution and mutual assistance also help to survive. Previously, the local population hunted toucans because of the fatty tasty meat, as well as feathers and patches of bright skin used by the natives as ritual decorations. Fortunately, in our time, such a hunt is a rare phenomenon, almost gone. The life span of a toucan reaches 50 years.

The nature of the toucan is calm and flexible. The bird is easy to tame, she likes to be in human society. Home keeping of a bird requires a lot of space - it should not be just a cage, but a space the size of a small room.

Toucans are quite mobile and noisy, so people who intend to have such a pet should keep these circumstances in mind, and they are quite expensive. Since the toucan is accustomed to a tropical climate, it means that they should be provided with warm and humid conditions for existence and habitual nutrition. Tropical guests can live peacefully together with other representatives of birds.

Conclusion

toucans- birds that are unlike other representatives of birds, not only externally. They resemble a child both in their character and behavior. These birds are curious, spontaneous and naive, trusting and very sociable.

When young children try to draw birds, they often draw them with exaggerated features. And then huge wings, eyes or beaks appear in the picture. In the latter case, the kids may not be so wrong after all. It is possible that their drawing depicts an unusual bird - a toucan. It is she who can often be seen in pictures with tropical forests. She is actually a symbol of such a climate.

But besides its fame as a tropical inhabitant, the toucan is very, very interesting. Moreover, it is unique. So, how is the toucan bird so different from many of its feathered counterparts?

Helpful information

First, a little background on ornithology. Does such a unique toucan bird really exist? Description of her unusual look you should start with the most remarkable part - the beak. And he is really outstanding in a toucan. Both literally and figuratively. It would be more accurate to say, not with a toucan, but with toucans. Indeed, under this name alone hides more than 30 species of birds belonging to 6 genera. That's what they're called - Tukanovye. Although they belong, surprisingly, to the Woodpecker order. But the popularity of all these birds has gained the most charismatic representative - a large toucan. It is also sometimes called "toko". And the toucan bird itself got its name from its cry, which practically reproduces this word.

Where does it live?

Of course, in our area Toko is not found. The habitat of the toucan bird is thickets of tropical forests. She is a habitual inhabitant of the entire territory of Central and South America - from the north of Mexico to the south of Argentina. Sometimes you can meet the Toko bird in the mountains - it can easily live at an altitude of up to 3000 meters above sea level. At the same time, the toucan does not like the very thicket, dark and gloomy. But light forest edges, groves near human habitation, palm tops - this is his favorite habitat. By the way, in countries located in the tropical zone, a toucan is found on the streets about as often as a dove in central Russia.

Voice

But unlike the dove, Toko is a very, very unusual representative of the feathered kingdom. The description of the toucan bird should begin with its voice. If you want to hear the real call of the jungle, just listen to Toko singing. He masterfully knows how not only to shout his victory cry “tokano!”, but also to parody many inhabitants of the tropics, and in such a way that any parrot will be envious. Although, in general, the voice of this bird is far from angelic. In addition, he also knows how to make characteristic clicks with his beak. But there is a special discussion about him.

The beak is the pride of the bird

What everyone knows about the toucan bird is its simply gigantic beak. It can reach a size of 20 cm, which is about one third of the total size of the toko. He himself is about 60 cm in size - of course, we are talking about a large toucan, the largest representative of its kind. The rest can be much smaller, and sometimes do not exceed the size of their most common relative - the woodpecker.

With its rather large size, the toucan's beak is very light. It is a real achievement of engineering, only embodied not by man, but by nature itself. First, it has notches along the edges, similar to a saw blade, which help the toucan to get its own food. Secondly, it is very light - after all, unlike other birds, Toko does not have a monolithic goiter, but a hollow one. Nature provides for the presence in it of cavities of bone tissue and keratin membranes.

With all this, it is not only lightweight, but also very durable. And its remarkable makes the toucan noticeable even when this bird is silent. But the body of Toko is very clumsy - large, covered with hard feathers. But here color scheme any fashionista can imitate it. How is the toucan bird painted? You have seen her photo more than once in books. Outwardly, this is a strict bird, which seems to be dressed in a frock coat and a white shirt. This impression is left by black plumage in the mass and a bright white toko collar.

But if you look closely, you can notice piquant features that are visible behind the severity - tail feathers red from below, bright blue rims around the eyes, a tongue of a peculiar feathery shape. This coloring completely coincides with the character of the toucan - for all their bulkiness and massiveness, they are very curious and lively birds. And their habits also deserve a separate story.

Let's start with the fact that toucans fly very badly. They prefer to perch in hollow tree trunks for most of the day. They also build their nest there. Toko are sociable birds, and live in pairs or small groups. Sometimes they can also arrange their life in termite mounds or shallow pits on the river bank. In addition, Toko are just wonderful parents. They take care of the offspring as a couple, hatch 2-4 chicks, and only once a year.

Scientists have long thought why the toucan has such a big beak? It seems that they are not predators - they eat fruits and small insects. They are also unlikely to defend themselves from enemies - it is very light, and the enemies of the toucan are such that no beak is a hindrance to them - predators. Unless he can intimidate him. But, as it turned out, a unique shape, as well as an unusual tongue, are simply created for cracking the fruits of passion fruit or figs. And also for tossing berries - one Toko tears off the fruit from the branch and throws it up, and the second one catches it.

How does a toucan manage to sleep with such a large beak, you may ask? Does it outweigh the relaxed bird down? No, everything is much more interesting - Toko's anatomy was created by nature very thoughtfully - his head turns perfectly 180 degrees, and his beak is comfortably located on his back between the wings. Moreover, at night the whole flock spends the night in one hollow. They take turns climbing back forward, on which the beak has already been laid. Then each toko presses its tail to its stomach, its head to its chest, wraps it all in wings and turns into a cozy feathered ball.

Conclusion

Such an unusual bird is a large toucan. Very original and completely unique. In addition to their behavior and appearance, they are also very social. In fact, toucans resemble children - spontaneous, naive and very sociable. They are trusting, curious and easily tamed.

Toucans are one of the most colorful tropical birds found in the Americas. Their most notable feature is their huge beak, the size of which, at times, is almost commensurate with the size of the bird itself. These largest representatives of the woodpecker order are known for their gullibility and quick wit. They are easily tamed and do well in captivity.

Description of the toucan

Toucan is a large bird with bright plumage and an exorbitantly large beak. It belongs to the toucan family and is, albeit distant, but, nevertheless, a relative of ordinary forest woodpeckers.

Appearance

Their body is large and rather massive, having an almost oval shape. The head is also oval and rather large, turning into a strong and strong, far from thin and graceful neck.

home distinguishing feature these birds - a huge beak, the size of which can be almost equal to the length of the body. True, in some species it is much smaller: it barely exceeds the size of the head.

The eyes of a toucan are quite large, rounded and very expressive for birds. Eye color can be black or lighter, such as dark brown.

The tail of most species is short and fairly wide, with well-developed large, usually black feathers. However, there are also species of toucans with rather long tails.

The wings are not long and not too strong, which is why toucans cannot be called first-class flyers. However, in the dense tropical forest where these birds live, they do not need to make long flights, it is enough just to be able to fly from branch to branch and move from one tree to another.

The legs, as a rule, are of a bluish tint, strong and powerful enough to hold the bird's massive body on a branch. Small chicks have a special calcaneal callus on their legs, with which they are held in the nest.

The main color of their plumage is black, complemented by large and very contrasting spots of other colors, such as white, yellow or cream. Even the toucan's beak is colored very very brightly: in some species of these birds, five different shades can be counted on only one beak.

As a rule, colored spots on the body of a toucan are arranged as follows:

• The main background of the plumage is jet black. The upper part of the head, almost the entire body and tail of the bird are painted in this color. However, there are also species whose main plumage color is not completely black, but rather has a different shade of tint, for example, chestnut.
• The lower part of the head, as well as the throat and chest, are colored in a lighter contrasting shade: as a rule, white or yellow of varying intensity: from pale lemon or creamy yellowish to rich saffron and yellow-orange.
• The rump and undertail can also be very brightly colored: white, red, orange or another contrasting shade.
• There are also often bright spots around the eyes, contrasting both with the main black background and with the light pattern on the lower part of the head, throat and upper chest.
• The legs of most species of toucans have a bluish-blue tint, the claws are also bluish.
• The eyes of these birds are black or brownish.
• The thin skin around the eyes can be colored in the brightest shades of blue, sky blue, bright green, orange-yellow or reddish.
• The color of the beak different types can be both dark and lighter and very bright. But even on black beaks, these birds have spots of bluish, yellow or orange hues.

It is interesting! The outlines of the body of toucans, their massive body, large head crowned with a huge powerful beak and shortened tail, together with a very bright and contrasting plumage coloring, give these birds an unusual and even grotesque look. However, one cannot but admit that toucans are beautiful, albeit in their own way.

Behavior, lifestyle

Toucans are jokingly called "Amazonian clowns" for their bright appearance and cheerful disposition. These birds prefer to stay in small flocks - about 20 individuals each. But during the breeding season, they can form pairs, after which they return to the flock with grown-up offspring.

Sometimes, when toucans need to migrate, which happens extremely rarely, since these birds are extremely reluctant to leave their inhabited places, they can also gather in larger flocks. The same thing happens when several small groups manage to find a particularly large fruit-bearing tree that can shelter these birds for a long time and provide them with a food base. In this case, toucans can also unite in large flocks.

These birds are active mainly during daylight hours. At the same time, toucans rarely descend to the ground, preferring to be among the clusters of branches in the crowns of trees, where there is a lot of food and where it can be difficult for predators to climb.

But at the same time, they are not at all grumpy, but, on the contrary, very friendly creatures, who also have a peculiar sense of humor. Toucans maintain friendly relations with other members of their flock and, if necessary, will certainly come to the aid of their relatives.

These birds are known for their cheerful disposition and funny habits. They often play with each other, jump on the branches of trees and knock on them with their beaks, and then, tilting their heads to one side, listen to the "music". They also tend to splash noisily in the water that accumulates after rain in the forks of thick branches.

There is no consensus among scientists about why the toucan needs its huge, and, at first glance, awkward beak. It seems strange to people unfamiliar with these birds: how can a toucan generally live normally, having such a “decoration”? Indeed, a large and heavy beak should have significantly complicated the life of a bird. Why doesn't this happen? After all, toucans do not look at all unhappy creatures offended by nature, on the contrary, they are very optimistic and cheerful birds.

It is interesting! The beak of toucans only looks overly massive: in fact, it is quite light due to the fact that it has many air cavities that significantly reduce its weight.

A huge beak is necessary for a toucan, first of all, because with its help it obtains food, in addition, many researchers agree that the beak of these birds acts as a kind of “air conditioner” and plays a huge role in thermoregulation. Also, with the help of the formidable clicking of their huge beaks, these birds drive away predators and protect themselves and their offspring from them.

In captivity, toucans do not cause concern to the owners and there are no problems with them, except for the fact that birds of this size need very large cages, which often have to be done independently or to order. When kept at home, toucans delight their owners with a friendly and even affectionate character, as well as the intelligence and ingenuity inherent in them by nature.

How long do toucans live

This is a surprisingly long-lived bird. Depending on the species, as well as on the conditions of existence, the life of toucans is from 20 to 50 years.

sexual dimorphism

It is not clearly expressed: birds of different sexes have the same plumage color and differ only slightly in size: females are slightly smaller than males and lighter in weight. However, in some species of toucans, females also have slightly smaller beaks than males.

Types of toucans

To real toucans, ornithologists include eight species of these birds:

• Yellow-throated toucan. Body length - 47-61 cm, weight - from 584 to 746 g. The main color of plumage is black. The bright yellow throat and upper chest are separated from the main jet black background by a narrow red border. The uppertail is creamy white, the undertail is bright red. The beak is two-tone, as if divided by darker and lighter shades diagonally. Its upperparts are bright yellow and the underparts are black or brownish chestnut. Around the eyes there is a pale green spot. This bird lives along the eastern slope of the Andes: in Peru, Ecuador, Colombia and Venezuela.
• Ariel toucan. The dimensions are approximately equal to 48 cm, weight 300-430 g. The main color is lacquer black. On the lower half of the head, throat and upper chest there is a bright yellow spot, the base of the black beak is also painted in the same shade. On the border of yellow and black colors, marks of a bright, orange-red color are clearly visible, the undertail and spots around the dark eyes, surrounded by spots of light bluish thin skin, have the same shade. Ariel toucans live in the southeastern regions of the Amazon.
• Lemon-throated toucan. The body length is about 48 cm, weight - about 360 g. In this jet-black bird, the upper chest and throat in front are painted in a pale lemon hue, turning into white on the sides. The area near the eye is light bluish, turning from top to bottom into white. On the top of the beak there is a bluish-yellow narrow strip, and its base is also painted in the same colors. These birds live in Venezuela and Colombia.
• Blue-faced toucan. This bird reaches approximately 48 cm in length and weighs between 300 and 430 g. The white patch on the throat and upper chest is separated from the main black color by a reddish stripe. There are bright blue spots around the eyes. The rump is a brick-reddish shade. The beak is black, except for a pale yellow stripe on top of it, and a yellow base. These toucans live in Venezuela, Bolivia and Brazil.
• Red-breasted toucan. The smallest among the representatives of its kind, in addition, its beak is shorter than that of other toucans. The size of these birds is 40-46 cm, weight - from 265 to 400 g. The throat and upper chest are yellow-orange, turning yellowish-white to the edges. The lower part of the chest and belly are red, the spots around the eyes also have a reddish tint. The beak is painted in greenish-blue shades. These birds live in Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay and northeast Argentina.
• Rainbow toucan. Body length from 50 to 53 cm, weight - about 400 grams. The chest, throat and lower part of the head are painted in lemon yellow, which, on the border with the black main color, is divided by a narrow red stripe, the undertail is bright red. The beak is painted in four shades: green, blue, orange and red, and along its edge and below there is a black edging. The edges of the two upper and lower parts of the beak are also edged with black narrow stripes. These toucans live from southern Mexico to northern Colombia and Venezuela.
• Big toucan. Length from 55 to 65 cm, weight about 700 g. The main color of plumage is black. On the lower part of the head, throat and chest there is White spot. The uppertail is also bright white, while the undertail is colored red. The eyes are bordered with bluish spots, and they, in turn, are surrounded by orange markings. The beak is yellow-orange, with a narrow red stripe above and black spots near the base and at its end. These toucans live in Bolivia, Peru, Paraguay and Brazil.
• White-breasted toucan. The length is 53-58 cm, weight is from 500 to 700 g. This bird got its name because the color of its throat and upper chest is pure white. On its border with a black main background, there is a red stripe. The beak is multicolored: its main tone is red, while in its upper part there are blotches of turquoise and bright yellow, clearly delimited from red by a coal-black stripe. The white-breasted toucan lives mainly in the Amazon.

Range, habitats

Toucans inhabit the forests of Central and South America, from Mexico to Argentina, and are found both in flat tropical rainforests and in highlands, at an altitude of up to 3 km above sea level. At the same time, birds prefer to settle where it is lighter, for example, on the edges or in sparse groves, and not in the very thick of forests. They are not afraid of people and often settle near their homes.

Toucans live in hollows, but due to the fact that their beak is not adapted for making holes in hardwood, these birds prefer to occupy existing holes in tree trunks. At the same time, several birds often live in one hollow at once.

It is interesting! In order for the beak not to take up too much space in a cramped nest, the toucan turns its head 180 degrees and places its beak on the back of itself or its closest neighbor.