Source: Vancouver Sun
What's green, crow-sized and can't carry a tune? A toucanet.
Visitors to the Vancouver Aquarium now have a chance to spot two of the crow-sized, heavy-billed, crimsonrumped toucanets, which have joined the Amazon family in the rainforest exhibit.
The birds were hatched and raised in the Emerald Forest Bird Garden, a breeding facility in California. A small species of toucan, they're now winging their way through the rainforest exhibition in the aquarium with a blue-fronted Amazon parrot, hyacinth macaws and other tropical birds.
"They're getting along really well," said aquarium spokeswoman Samantha Kent. "They're amazing birds and very vocal. People seem to love them."
The birds have vividly green feathers, which allow them to find camouflage in the trees. They are usually heard before they're seen because they tend to grunt rather than sing. Their "ggruks," guttural "gaaks" and nasal "cua, cuas" are used to defend their territory, send warnings or court their mates. Toucanets are native to Colombia, Ecuador and Venezuela.