Did you know?

Toucans mostly eat fruit, but will occasionally eat insects, small birds, and lizards if the opportunity arises. They are excellent seed dispersers, helping to spread the seeds of fruit trees throughout their forest home.

A distinctive characteristic is their large, often brightly-coloured bill, which is unusually big for their body size. Researchers are undecided about its purpose, though it is thought to have evolved to impress mates or deter predators. Though the size of the beak may intimidate other birds, it isn’t sturdy enough to help in a fight. Toucans use their bill to reach and peel fruit and can even control blood supply to it. Sending heat from their body to their bill helps them to cool down when needed.

Toucans are social species and are likely to congregate in flocks of up to 20 individuals, though they may split off into pairs during the breeding season. In a courtship ritual, toucans romance their potential mate by throwing fruit to one another before nesting high up in the tree canopy. Female toucans lay 2 to 4 eggs a year and the male and female will take turns incubating them. Chicks are not born with a large bill; it takes several months for it to grow to full size.

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