Pale-billed Mountain Toucan

Andigena laminirostris

The Andes mountains of South America are where you'll find the Pale-billed Mountain Toucan. They live in the humid forests that sit just under 10,000ft.

You'll identify these birds by all their various color patches. They have blue chests, chestnut wings, splashes of red and yellow near the tail, and ivory, black, yellow, green, and red on the face and bill. They are similar in look to the other species of Mountain Toucan (all of which have a Andean range), but each of the birds differs in the face and bill.

As with all Toucans, the Pale-billed Mountain Toucan is a frugivore, and is a vital spreader of seeds for their habitat. They eat as many as 100 different kinds of fruit (I didn't even know there were that many fruits growing in one place!), and either digest or regurgitate the seeds. This diet even plays into their courting rituals-- males will feed fruit to the females to gain favor.

Pale-billed Mountain Toucans will form monogamous pairs once they reach sexual maturity at age 3. The couple will often take over the nest of another bird and line it with sticks and regurgitated materials. Both the mother and father incubate and care for the chicks.

Sadly, the species is on the decline and is listed as Near Threatened. Habitat loss from logging, human settlement, and agriculture plays a big part in this. The birds do live within nature reserves, more more conservation action is needed outside of those areas.

IUCN Status : Near Threatened
Location : South America
Size : Length up to 21in (53cm)

Classification : Phylum : Chordata -- Class : Aves -- Order : Piciformes
Family : Ramphastidae -- Genus : Andigena -- Species : A. laminirostris

Comments

Bornean Orangutan

The Bornean Orangutan is one of two extant Orangutan species in the world. It is the third largest primate (after Gorillas) and is the largest primarily tree-dwelling animal in the world. Males are substantially larger than females, and average at around 165lbs. Bornean Orangutans are largely solitary. A handful might live within a small range but they will seldom interact with one another. Males and females only meet up to breed, which happens only once every several years. A young Orangutan will stay with it's mother for about five years, and the females tend to go about eight years between births. That is the longest interim period of any animal! Sadly, the Bornean Orangutans are in a lot of trouble. They need large forests in order to thrive, and deforestation and habitat degradation has left many homeless. They are also hunted for meat and for traditional medicines. Conservation areas are being established to help these guys in the wild, and it is believed that there are a...

Halloween Crab

Gecarcinus quadratus The Halloween Crab goes by many names, including the Red Land Crab, Whitespot Crab, and Moon Crab. I personally like Halloween Crab though, since it really reflects the interesting colors. They have black carapaces, orange-red legs, and purple claws! Halloween Crabs live in the Pacific coast mangroves and forests of Central and South America. They actually live in the forests as adults, and return to the ocean in order to reproduce. Did you know that they live as far away as 18 miles (30km) from water? Not where you normally think Crabs to be! While living in the forest, the Crabs forage nocturnally for different plant matter, including leaves and sapling. They also dig long burrows into the ground for protection. These burrows can measure nearly 5 ft long! Halloween Crabs are sometimes kept in captivity, and can be very tricky pets due to their excellent climbing skills. IUCN Status : Not Listed ...

Four!

For anyone who was counting, yesterday was our birthday-- four years! Four years filled with animals from A to Z, more than 1,100 of them! I can't thank my readers enough, it's been wonderful! And in celebration of that milestone... I'm taking a break. Hopefully not forever, but for a little bit at least. In the mean time I plan on getting a new layout out, along with some updates to some of the older articles. I'll post updates here and on the Facebook page, I'm also brainstorming some new animal-related projects, so keep an eye out! Thanks again for four awesome years!

Animal A Day!

Search This Blog