| Plate-billed Mountain Toucan | |
|---|---|
| In north-west Ecuador | |
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Piciformes |
| Family: | Ramphastidae |
| Genus: | Andigena |
| Species: | A. laminirostris |
| Binomial name | |
| Andigena laminirostris Gould, 1851 |
|
The Plate-billed Mountain Toucan (Andigena laminirostris) is a species of bird in the Ramphastidae family. It is found in humid montane forests growing on the west Andean slopes in north-western Ecuador and south-western Colombia at a wide range of high, mountain altitudes. This Ramphastid is a stunning shade of blue, highlighted with a variety of reds, browns, greens, and bright golds. This bird is mainly a fruit-eater and is quite active and noisy, making calls sometimes referred to as a pack of hounds. This species is near threatened according to the IUCN Red List because of habitat loss. Toucans are very closely related to the Barbets, including the Toucan Barbet which has striking color similarities to the Plate-Billed Mountain Toucan.There are four Andigenas, which are the four species of Mountain Toucans, the Plate-Billed, the Grey-breasted Mountain Toucan (Andigena cucullata), Black-billed Mountain Toucan (Andigena nigrirostris), and the Hooded Mountain Toucan (Andigena hypoglauca). The order is Piciformes, which consists of nine families, including jacamars, puffbirds, woodpeckers, barbets, and toucans. The family Ramphastidae is specifically for the toucans and contains five genera and about forty different species.[1]
Contents |
A Plate-Billed Mountain Toucan will grow to be between 42 to 53.34 centimeters(16.5 to 21 inches) in length, with the bill being 8 to 10 centimeters (3.25 to 4 inches) alone. The bird's weight for a male is around 314.68 grams(11.1 ounces) and for a female around 303.34 grams (10.7 ounces). The Plate-Billed Mountain Toucan is a zygodactyl, meaning it perches with two toes forward and two toes behind, which is common in other birds, such as parrots. Despite its size, the bill is extremely light in weight. The extreme base of the upper mandible and half of the lower mandible is a dark red. The bony, raised, rectangular plate portion, near the base of the upper mandible, is an ivory color, with the remaining parts of the bill being black. The crown and nape of the bird are also a glossy black, while the upper parts and wings golden olive color and darker green/brown for the wing feathers. The rump is a bright, lemon yellow with the upper tail-coverts being a dark green. The underparts of the bird are a brilliant blue containing a patch of golden yellow at each side. The thighs of the toucan are a maroon like brown with crimson under tail-coverts. The tail feathers are a drab gray, highlighted with a touch of rufous at the tips. The eye has a beautiful patch of yellow skin under the eye, and a yellow-green patch above it, and all accented with a bright red iris.
The other mountain toucans have very similar coloration when it comes to the wings and tail feathers, but, as their names indicate, there are some distinct differences as well. The Black-Billed has just the one color for the bill and some white on the collar. The Gray-Breasted has the full gray color on the front and duller coloration for the rest of its body also, not as bright as the Plate-Billed. The Hooded Mountain Toucan has a darker hood on the top of its head and no bright or unique colorations around the eye. All of the other Mountain Toucans can also be found in the Andes Mountain Range in Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru.
The sexes call each other in duets. The males makes loud repetitions of a tryyyyyyyk and females create a drier t't't't't't't't noise. Loud rattles and clicks are also made and can be heard from 1 kilometer or more away. Toucans also make a lot of racket by hitting their large bills onto different objects such as trees. The Plate-Billed Mountain Toucan is the most vocal of all of the Mountain Toucans, and an example of one of the calls is found at the following link. [1]
You will find Plate-Billed Mountain Toucans to be living in humid Montane forests where bromeliads, cecropia, and mosses are abundant, and are usually found between 1,188.72 and 3,200.4 meters(3,900 and 10,500 feet) in elevation. They are found in Ecuador and Colombia in the Andes Mountain Cloud Forests.
The overall global population numbers of Plate-Billed Mountain Toucans has not yet been quantified, but it is said to be 'fairly common' although there is a moderately rapid and on-going population decline based on habitat loss and destruction. This species is given the rank of Near Threatened by the IUCN because of this habitat loss due to intensive logging, human settlement, cattle grazing, mining, and at a lesser extent from the international cage bird trade.
Toucans are frugivores and eat from as many as 100 different species of plants and trees. After eating a fruit, large seeds are regurgitated immediately. If the seed is small it can pass through the bird's digestive system. Both of these methods are important in seed dispersal. For protein, an assortment of insects are consumed, especially common during the breeding season. The Plate-Billed Mountain Toucan will forage in small groups. Such flocks rarely consist of more than 12 birds and don't take flight in a tight group, but more of a wandering, loose group. A video of a Plate-Billed Mountain Toucan eating berries is found at this link. http://ibc.lynxeds.com/video/plate-billed-mountain-toucan-andigena-laminirostris/bird-palm-tree-eating-fruits
Breeding Season is at its peak in June and July when the weather is most dry and the fruits are at their greatest supply. One of these toucans is sexually mature by 3 years of age. Toucans roost in pairs, families, or small groups of unrelated individuals, but form monogamous mating pairs. Typically a male will feed fruit to the female as a part of courtship, and also mutual preening occurs.
Nests for these birds are far from intricate or fancy. They find and invade woodpecker holes near the tops of trees and then the eggs lie on wood debris and a lining of compressed seeds that the parents regurgitated prior to the egg laying. The toucan's eggs are white and elliptical in shape. Both parents incubate and both also share the responsibility of feeding the young. There are usually 3 to 4 eggs per clutch and 16 day incubation period. The young fledge from the nest between 46 and 60 days old. Juvenal plumage is typically softer and duller in color than that of an adult.
|
||||||||||||||||||||