Crab eating fox sniffing for food, Pantanal, Brazil

The Crab-eating fox tends to have a similar size and shape to most foxes. It is mainly grayish-brown, with red areas on the legs and face, and on its long, bushy, black-tipped tail and ears. Its legs are short and strong and its coat is thick and short. Coloration varies from brown to pale or dark gray, to yellowish. Along the back legs there is a black streak, with a black stripe on the spine. On the muzzle, ears and paws the fur is more reddish. The ear tips, tail and legs are black and the ears are round and wide. The torso is rather narrow. The Crab-eating fox lives in central South America. It ranges from Colombia and Venezuela as far as Uruguay, Paraguay, and Northern Argentina. Its habitat mostly includes savannahs and woodlands; however, it is known to live in a range of other areas including edge and forested areas. It may prefer higher areas during the rainy season, moving to lowlands in the dry season. The Crab-eating fox is mainly nocturnal and is also active during dusk, spending the day in a den dug by other animals. These foxes travel together in pairs but hunt as individuals. […]

Toco Toucan on the ground, Pantanal, Brazil

The toco toucan (Ramphastos toco), also known as the common toucan, giant toucan or simply toucan, is the largest and probably the best known species in the toucan family. It is found in semi-open habitats throughout a large part of central and eastern South America. It is a common attraction in zoos. The Toco Toucan is the one of the most recognizable tropical birds in the Americas. The only non-forest toucan, the Toco Toucan is found along forest edges and in low wet grassland from Guyana south to Argentina, and from central Brazil west to southeastern Peru. Toco Toucans are the largest species of toucan and can be identified by their black body, white bib, red undertail coverts and large red-orange bill. Toco Toucans feed extensively on figs and other fruit, and also occasionally prey on insects and nestling birds. When foraging, these birds travel in small groups in the canopy, gliding in single file from site to site. The toco toucan has a striking plumage with a mainly black body, a white throat, chest and uppertail-coverts, and red undertail-coverts. What appears to be a blue iris is actually thin blue skin around the eye. This blue skin is surrounded […]

Toco Toucan with open bill, Pantanal, Brazil

The toco toucan (Ramphastos toco), also known as the common toucan, giant toucan or simply toucan, is the largest and probably the best known species in the toucan family. It is found in semi-open habitats throughout a large part of central and eastern South America. It is a common attraction in zoos. The Toco Toucan is the one of the most recognizable tropical birds in the Americas. The only non-forest toucan, the Toco Toucan is found along forest edges and in low wet grassland from Guyana south to Argentina, and from central Brazil west to southeastern Peru. Toco Toucans are the largest species of toucan and can be identified by their black body, white bib, red undertail coverts and large red-orange bill. Toco Toucans feed extensively on figs and other fruit, and also occasionally prey on insects and nestling birds. When foraging, these birds travel in small groups in the canopy, gliding in single file from site to site. The toco toucan has a striking plumage with a mainly black body, a white throat, chest and uppertail-coverts, and red undertail-coverts. What appears to be a blue iris is actually thin blue skin around the eye. This blue skin is surrounded […]

Beak as big as the bird, Pantanal, Brazil

The toco toucan (Ramphastos toco), also known as the common toucan, giant toucan or simply toucan, is the largest and probably the best known species in the toucan family. It is found in semi-open habitats throughout a large part of central and eastern South America. It is a common attraction in zoos. The Toco Toucan is the one of the most recognizable tropical birds in the Americas. The only non-forest toucan, the Toco Toucan is found along forest edges and in low wet grassland from Guyana south to Argentina, and from central Brazil west to southeastern Peru. Toco Toucans are the largest species of toucan and can be identified by their black body, white bib, red undertail coverts and large red-orange bill. Toco Toucans feed extensively on figs and other fruit, and also occasionally prey on insects and nestling birds. When foraging, these birds travel in small groups in the canopy, gliding in single file from site to site. The toco toucan has a striking plumage with a mainly black body, a white throat, chest and uppertail-coverts, and red undertail-coverts. What appears to be a blue iris is actually thin blue skin around the eye. This blue skin is surrounded […]

Chestnut eared Aracari front pose, Pantanal, Brazil

The chestnut-eared aracari, or chestnut-eared araçari (Pteroglossus castanotis), is a bird native to central and south-eastern South America. It belongs to the toucan and aracari family (Ramphastidae). The chestnut-eared aracari is a larger, more colorful bird than the black-necked aracari, which it otherwise resembles. The Chestnut-eared Aracari is a medium-sized toucan of the Amazon Basin of South America, especially the southern and western parts of the basin. It can be very common in its range and has the widest distribution of any of the aracaris. Chestnut-eared Aracari is primarily frugivorous but also feeds on invertebrates. It is an attractively patterned species with a large yellow and black bill, a pale eye surrounded by blue facial skin, dark upperparts, and a yellow belly divided by a red band. Like others in the genus Pteroglossus, its diet mainly consists of fruit taken from trees in the area, sometimes retrieved by hanging upside-down. The chestnut-eared aracari also may include flower nectar, insects, and nuts in its diet as well.[4] Engaging in behavior similar to the saffron toucanet, they also appear to prey on the nests of other bird species, eating the eggs and baby birds. The range of the chestnut-eared aracari is the […]