Toucans of Central Costa Rica

They say there are forty two different species of toucans and of those Costa Rica lays claim to being home to six of the species. After living in Central Costa Rica for a year though I would have to add another species that is not included in the list of six.

In the area that we lived in, up in the mountainous region above the town of Guapiles, toward Mt. Turrialba, the Collared Aracari Toucan, (AH-rah-SAH-reez), was quite prevalent and we saw many of them regularly. In fact one of our favorite things to do was to go out into the 10 acres of bananas grown on our property and bring home as many as we could carry, not only for our eating enjoyment but also to hang some in the walkway outside of our cabin so that we could observe the toucans that would swoop down for an easy snack. They would fly over loudly with their "cheep-eep" type call and then come in for a landing to munch ravenously on the bananas that we put out for them. The Collared Aracari usually tends to fly and forage in the middle and upper levels of forest but must have seen an easy lunch down in our walkway to take advantage of. They are known to fly in the open spaces between trees and look for their food as trees will fruit more where they receive more light.

The Collared Aracari Toucan has interesting coloring and is one of the most colorful of the toucans. It has a more bland colored bill than some, a lighter yellow with a maroon section near the head, there is also an interesting design of black along the part of the bill that opens which reminds me of the flames that some people paint on their cars or a saw blade. Its body makes up for the lack of color in the bill though with its chest being quite remarkable, on the upper chest it has a spot of black and red on a back ground of bright yellow which follows down to a stripe of black across its middle. The main part of its upper body is black with splashes of yellow and red near the tail.

This species of toucan is the only one known to sleep in families or groups in trees all year long. The parent birds take care of their young, usually in a hole carved out of a tree by a woodpecker. As the young birds grow and mature they stay in the same hole with the parents. They are usually seen flying in flocks of 6 to 15 birds, and at night as many as 6 sleep together in one tree hole.

Toucans have hard beaks, but are still categorized in the soft bill family. Their bills are made of a honeycomb type material that is porous and very sensitive, you would never know it by the way they attack the bunches of bananas though. These birds are frugivores, which means that they eat mostly fruits and nuts. Occasionally they have been known to snack on eggs, insects and small lizards, too.

Costa Rica is also home to many species of snakes and lizards that like to raid bird nests, birds of prey are also among the predators of the toucans. The animals that live on the ground can not climb up high enough to get to the nests that are built in the upper canopies of the rain forests though. Jaguars and margays have also been known to eat toucans if given the chance. I know our domestic cats would give a good try at catching them, luckily they are very alert and flew away at the slightest movement by the cat.

Toucans are a great contribution to the ecosystem of the rainforest. When they eat different fruits the seeds go through their system pretty much unharmed. After making its way through the birds system the seed is deposited in a new place to start reforestation.

If toucans live in the region you are visiting you will know because there are quite a few of them, so many that none of the species are on the endangered list. They like to make their homes in areas that are heavily forested compared to the ones that more deforestation has taken place in though, as the food there is more abundant.

Most places will tell you that there are six species of toucans in Costa Rica, but as far as I am concerned I count seven. The six that are more well known are the Channel Bill Toucan, Red Bill Toucan, Chestnut-Mandible Toucan, Toco Toucan, Bright-billed Toucans, nicknamed the "flying bananas" and the Keel billed Toucan which I consider the prettiest with its brightly colored beak. Which ever species one is lucky enough to spot will be a real treat, the way they hop from branch to branch is quite entertaining and fun to watch.

Sources:
www.strayreality.com/birding1b_tropical__toucans.htm
www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collared_Aracar