I Hear Toucans!

I can hear them right now! It goes on almost all day long. They make the strangest sound. Kind of like the sound you get when you run this stick along the frog's back.

Click on this short video to hear them.

 

These were the first big toucans we saw. It was at La Fortuna up by Lake Arenal. These are Chestnut-mandibled Toucans that stand about 22 inches and are the largest Toucans in Costa Rica. We don't get these at Monteverde.

Francisco got this photo by holding the camera up to his spotting scope.

This little guy below is the Emerald Toucanet - one of my favorites! They perch in the trees outside our house on a regular basis in small groups of about 4 to 5. We didn't notice them at first because they are so quiet but now that we know to look for them, we see them all the time. They are about half the size of the other Toucans. I have seen them on the bird feeder at Stella's Bakery but haven't been able to get any of them to come down to our feeder. Yet!

These pictures were taken at LaPaz Waterfall Gardens. I was surprised what a soft touch the Toucans have when they sit on your shoulder. They were friendly and curious. Look at this one check out BigJohn's sunglasses. This place also had Emerald Toucanets but you could tell they were not happy being caged. They stayed up on the top branches and didn't want anything to do with people.

 

 This is what we see and hear around Monteverde. It's the Keel-billed Toucan and has that beautiful rainbow-colored bill. Today they've landed in the trees by our house a number of times. It's always a pleasure to see them. They're either in pairs or with a small group. They're about 4 inches smaller than the Chestnut-mandibled Toucan.

 The first time we saw the Emerald Toucanet I reached for my bird book so I could identify it. And there it was! Right on the front cover.