English - Red-breasted Toucan
Portuguese - Tucano-de-bico-verde
Latin - Ramphastos dicolorus
The Red-breasted Toucan (or the green billed Toucan) is the smallest species of the Ramphastos family. It is also the most southern species of toucan, occurring from eastern central Brazil south to eastern Paraguay and northeastern Argentina.
The Red-breasted Toucan’s name is derived from the large area of red feathers found on its belly, while its chest is orange-yellow with yellow sides and it top is black. Its bill is shorter than those of most other toucan species, averaging 10 cm n length. They weigh up to 400g and can get to 46cm in length.
There main source of food is fruit and nuts but will also feed on other smaller animals like frogs, insects, etc but is also known to feed on nestlings and eggs of other birds.
The Red-breasted Toucan lives in forested areas from the coast to the mountainous areas, including plateau forests.
It inhabits the canopy of high forests, mainly in mountainous areas of the Atlantic forest.
Red-breasted toucans live in pairs or small family groups. The mating ritual is a fun-loving affair for Toucans, as they throw fruit to one another.
Like all of their other activities, nesting happens high up in hollow areas in trees. The bill is not effective for digging or any other type of extensive excavation work and so they must rely on holes already formed by other means.
The nests are not lined, but the two to four shiny white eggs that are laid each year rest on a few wood chips created while enlarging the opening or on various kinds of regurgitated seeds collected for this purpose. Parents share incubation duties, but rarely sit on the nest for more than an hour at a time and the eggs are often left uncovered. Both parents share in feeding fruit to the babies for up to 8 weeks.
After 16 days the nestlings are born blind, with no trace of down on their pink skin. The bill is unremarkable until about 16 days old when it takes on the distinguishing features of the toucan, and requires up to four months to develop fully. Feathers begin to expand at 4 weeks.
Babies have pads on their elbows that protect their feet by keeping them elevated until they fledge.
The Red-breasted Toucan was once common throughout its range but due to the destruction of its natural habitat, it has become rare in some regions but in saying that The Red-breasted Toucan is classified as “of Least Concern”. In protected areas it is widespread and abundant and does not qualify for a more at risk category. (yet)
All 3 photos of the Red-breasted Toucan were taken at Parque das Aves - Foz do Iguacu - Parana
English - Bare-faced ibis
Portuguese - Tapicuru-de-cara-pelada
Latin - Phimosus infuscatus
The bare-faced ibis, also known as the whispering ibis, is a species of bird in the Threskiornithidae family of birds.
The Bare-faced ibis is either dark drown or a blackish color. It is called the bare-faced ibis because it does not have any feathers on its face. It has a long Decurved bill that’s pinkish to reddish brown. The skin on its face is usually a redish color and it also has long orangely colored beak with pink legs. The total length of the ibis ranges between 45 and 50 cm.
The Bare-Faced ibis are usually seen in large flocks of their own species or with other species of ibis, sometimes even found with domestic animals. They are not very territorial towards other ibis birds, and rarely found alone, but most of the time the aggression is shown from food robbery from another ibis or animal. Regarding sexual behavior, the Bare-Faced ibis is less aggressive amongst other species of ibis. The males have a larger bill than the females relative to their body sizes, and sexual selection is not as intense as it is in other species. They share nests with other species as well.
The Bare-faced Ibis is widespread in South America, occurring in Ecuador, Colombia, Guyana, Surinam, Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay, Urugay and Argentina. It prefers habitats like marshes, wet meadows, rice fields, savannahs and similar open habitats.
They forages in most soil and along the edges of standing water. The diet consists of insects, worms, clams, and other small invertebrates. Flocks will also follow cattle and horses to capture invertebrate prey flushed by these animals.
The Bare-faced Ibis usually breeds in small colonies; relative to other ibises, it exhibits an intermediate degree of coloniality. Colonies ranging from few individuals up to 20 pairs with breeding dates from August through December. They shares nesting habitats with other avian species with which it may compete intensely for nesting sites. Bare-faced Ibises nest in dense shrubs in brushy savanna, and in thickets of trees and shrubs surrounding lagoons. They place their nests on small, stunted trees, or in the lower parts of trees or shrubs, where they build a platform made of branches. Nests are rude structures, almost flat and relatively small for the size of the bird, not exceeding 35.5 cm in diameter. They lay from one to eight eggs. Nests constructed in the center of a breeding colony tend to have larger clutches than nests in the periphery of the colony. Eggs are lightly colored, between green and blue, similar to those of a heron. Incubation takes from 21 to 23 days and is performed by both males and females. Nestlings fledge three weeks after hatching.
Because the Bare-faced ibis is associated with wetlands, the species may be affected by various human activities. The abuse of ecosystem services such as water regulation, water supply or water treatment as byproducts of recreational activities in wetlands results in habitat degradation and disturbance. Consequently, birds associated to wetlands may be displaced as an effect of sound disturbance created by cars, motorboats and other watercraft. The presence of people close to water bodies and shorelines is also a determinant factor in the displacement of species.
Perhaps most importantly, wetlands in many areas are increasingly facing destruction due to urbanization and pollution, posing a threat to the flora and fauna associated to these habitats. In saying all that, the Bare-faced Ibis is classified as “of Least Concern” species for the time being. Because the species has broad distribution, it is not considered to be under any current or looming threat. In addition, populations of this species are large and appear to be stable through time, suggesting they are generally in good condition.
Both photos of the Bare-faced ibis were taken at Parque Barigui - Curitiba - Parana
English - White-faced Whistling-Duck
Portuguese - Irerê
Latin - Dendrocygna viduata
The white-faced whistling duck goes by its name as a whistling duck, so does not quack like most ducks.
The white-faced whistling duck has a peculiar disjunctive distribution, occurring in Africa and South America. It has been suggested that some may have been transported to new locations worldwide. The white-faced whistling-duck occupies a variety of freshwater habitats, including lakes, swamps, large rivers and flood-plains and some artificial habitats, such as rice fields and sewage farms. It prefers wetlands in open county with mud or sandbars and a rich variety of emergent vegetation for nesting
The white-faced whistling-duck is a long-legged duck with a conspicuous white face and neck patch that sits in sharp contrast to its otherwise black and brown plumage. The rest of the head and neck is black along with the wings, rump and tail, and the breast is a rich chestnut colour. The sides of the body are lightly barred black and white, and the bill and legs are slaty grey. The male and female white-faced whistling-duck are similar in appearance, although the female is typically less bold in colour and the juveniles have a greyish, white or ash-grey face, throat and underparts, and the chestnut on the breast is less extensively and duller. They can reach up to 45 cm in length and can weigh around 900 grams.
They eat underwater tubers and seeds of aquatic plants, also molluscs, small aquatic animals and invertebrates such as aquatic insects, they commonly obtain their food by diving.
The nest of the white-faced whistling duck is a simple depression in the ground amongst tall grass or reed beds over water but occasionally in tree hollows. They lay between 6 to 10 white eggs, which are incubated by both, female and male, for 26 to 28 days. Chicks leave the nest and fledge eight weeks after hatching. After breeding, white-faced whistling ducks undergo a flightless molt period that lasts from 18-25 days.
With a very wide distribution, and a large population that is thought to be increasing in size, the white-faced whistling-duck is not under immediate threat of extinction. The species is, however, susceptible to avian botulism and avian influenza, and so may become threatened by future outbreaks of these diseases. In parts of its African range, the white-faced whistling-duck is hunted for local consumption and trade, such as in Malawi and Botswana, and is hunted for use in traditional medicine in Nigeria
Both photos of the White-faced Whistling-Duck were taken at Parque das Aves - Foz do Iguasu - Parana
