Size Matters, for Toucan Bills

These species, like this Keel-billed Toucan (above), use their long, lightweight bills to reach out and take fruit from tiny branches that would not be able to support their body weight. They manage this with impressive delicacy, carefully plucking fruit with the tip of the bill, flicking it up, tossing their head back and catching it in the mouth, all in one swift, precise motion. Though fruit comprises their chief diet, they will also take eggs, insects, nestlings, snakes and lizards.

The pronounced serrated edges of their bills, as shown in this Chestnut-collared Aracari (above), are designed to aid in the cutting of fruit and nuts. Despite their relatively-large size, toucans and aracaris move with agility and grace, hopping amongst the highest branches of the canopy in search of food. They are social birds, prefering to feed and roost in groups.