toucan question

[cateyes221981]

my toucan demands i hand feed him a few times a day if i don't he will become aggressive and start smashing things? Anyone deal with this before?

Even if hes not hungry he just wants me to offer him something to he can hold it in his bill:62::63:

Hes not holding it in this picture but he will hold it up high and then just stare at me

 

[Kiwibird]

OOOOO... he is very pretty! I know very little about toucans, but is it possible he may benefit from some trick training? I believe toucans can learn tricks and are fairly intelligent birds, so perhaps giving him a time each day to look forward to one on one interaction and challenging activities would help

 

[thekarens]

Maybe he just wants the attention.

 

[cateyes221981]

he use to be very very aggressive when i got him, but then he started to like me, i think ill try to train him first to step up? From what I understand he had a mate but he killed her according to his previous owner.


He has a scary beak that can do damage just have to be careful, sometimes hes so happy and nice then other times he just feels like hurting me? but he has not yet i am careful around him. He has a huge huge fight i had custom made.

 

[Allee]

He's incredible! I have no experience with Toucans, do they chew or play with toys at all?

 

[cateyes221981]

not that I noticed but others play ball once in a blue moon though mine will hit his bell

 

[Kiwibird]

Perhaps he would enjoy some kind of foraging activity? It sounds to me like he wants attention and mental stimulation.

And NOT trying to cause a controversy, just saying, the bird tricks people have a toucan, and theirs is trained, appears friendly in the videos and seems to like tricks. Thats why I thought maybe yours is acting out because he's bored and possibly trying to communicate he's ready to be your friend

 

[Mekaisto]

Toucanets can become very very bossy if you let them. Around breeding season especially, their hormones make them pretty aggressive.

It does sound like he's trying to order you around - what happens when you give him a non-food item?

 

[Delfin]

In comparison to the size of their body, Toucans have larger bills than any other bird in the world. The Toucans' beak is also one of the best heat regulating systems in the entire animal kingdom. The arteries in their large bills expand when the bird gets hot; and release heat. This helps them keep cool in the hot environment in which they live.

While the Toucans' bill looks big and heavy but it is actually extremely light due to been made of a spongy substance called keratin. Many mammals' nails and hair is made of keratin this includes humans The toucans' large beak helps them forage for food. For instance they can reach hanging fruit and reach deep into holes in trees to obtain food items. Although the Toucan's bill looks scary it's not strong or an effective weapon against predators. However the size of the bill is intimidating to some animals

 

[Anansi]

Your toucan is absolutely beautiful! How old is he? How long have you had him? And do you know his weight? And are their bites actually painful? I'd heard that the size of the beak in relation to their bodies doesn't allow the leverage for much of a bite. True? (Full of questions, aren't I? Lol!)

@Delfin: thank you for that info. I did not know that bit about the heat regulation capabilities of their beaks! VERY interesting!

 

[Birdman666]

Sounds like an attention thing to me too, but I haven't played with that many toucans.

The toucans I have played with, however, had practically no bite pressure which was refreshing after working with macaws. Go ahead, bite me... I honestly don't care. It doesn't hurt.

 

[cateyes221981]

not pressure but they have serrated beaks so they can cut you open and do more damage than a parrot of the same size and the wound goes black

if they are just playing they won't do it tho they have to be angry, they play and explore with their beaks also, i am a lot more scared of being attacked from mine than a parrot of the same size but not one of my macaws which is much larger.

I guess both can be bad and both have given me scars just a diff kind of pain? lol mynas on the other hand use their feet like a bird of prey and hammer or they will perch up high and nail u in the head hard and can really hurt also. My parrots and corvids always i find had the sweetest natures usually. In the wild i think a lot of softbills are more predatory and also respond by fighting predators off rather than flight like most parrots do. Its the targeting and cordination of mynas thats crazy though. Ive had parrots fly at me to attack me its okay i dont mind it but when a myna does it i never have any idea its comming and they always hit me in a spot i don't expect.

One thing i noticed is the aracari will give each other food like give their mates a piece of food to ensure a bond or something. NOt sure about the other ones though. I find it hard to find information about the individual species.

My guyannas are the most sweet I find though by far. Both to other birds and people.

 

[Anansi]

Ouch. Though Bixby does have those vampire fang things on either side of his upper beak. Those were murder before he was bite-pressure trained.

Do you mean something like that? Or multiple serrations on either side?

 

[cateyes221981]

I can get a close up of my aracari bill but this is easier If i just show you one from here, you see each side the whole huge bill is just like a serreated knife they will use that to their advantage to kill birds, snakes, lizards or fight

http://notesfromthewildside.com/wp-...hestnut-eared-aracari-BINNS-IMG_1517-copy.jpg


They have bite pressure but not like a parrot they are cutters and slicers, if they get you even a small bit the wound turns black for weeks.

 

[cateyes221981]

one thing I don't understand though is they say taco toucan is the Hycinth macaws worst predator

Predator of the world's largest macaw key to its survival

I wonder how the toucan gets the macaws out of the nest thougH ?

 

[Birdman666]

See, now I played with Toco's and they didn't have that hacksaw for a bill... it was very smooth and even when he was upset and lashing out at me, the bird did not seem to be capable of applying a significant amount of bite pressure.

I've seen what my amazon can do with a single egg tooth. I'd hate to be on the business end of a sawblade if that bird was upset! That would cut right through flesh! The GINSU beak... it slices, it dices, it never needs sharpening!

 

[Anansi]

one thing I don't understand though is they say taco toucan is the Hycinth macaws worst predator

Predator of the world's largest macaw key to its survival

I wonder how the toucan gets the macaws out of the nest thougH ?

Lol! For a moment I thought you meant that toco toucans hunt hyacinth macaws!!! Hahaha! But they just steal their eggs! Smh. I'd have had a whole new respect for that beak if they were using it to take down grown hyacinths! Lol!

But thank you for the info and the pic! I do see what you mean with that serrated beak. Nasty! Bite pressure training would begin on hatch day!

As for getting them out of the nest, I bet they just wait for them to take a potty break.

 

[cateyes221981]

birdman i noticed that also some of them have it some don't, I wonder if they get it later on in life like around breeding age 4ish? My one guyanna I don't think has a bill like that either.

My emerald just started to get it and hes 2.

This one looks like he is getting it http://static.flickr.com/74/172698081_d1f98f1d45_o.jpg

When they grab another bird they won't let go, the serrated bill has me kinda curious now also

some are super saw like

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cLCXD0hpWiI/VEcko4cFLGI/AAAAAAAACIM/NUCug7s_M94/s1600/ad+aracari.jpeg

while others are very smooth

I notice they do hammer wood and sometimes bite it, i guess they are related to wood peckers

 

[RavensGryf]

The GINSU beak... it slices, it dices, it never needs sharpening!

For a moment I thought you meant that toco toucans hunt hyacinth macaws!!! Hahaha! But they just steal their eggs! Smh. I'd have had a whole new respect for that beak if they were using it to take down grown hyacinths! Lol!

ROTFL!!

This is all so interesting about Toucans, Toucanets, and Aracaris! I also assumed they all had the smooth beak like Mark was talking about.

 

[Birdman666]

birdman i noticed that also some of them have it some don't, I wonder if they get it later on in life like around breeding age 4ish? My one guyanna I don't think has a bill like that either.

My emerald just started to get it and hes 2.

This one looks like he is getting it http://static.flickr.com/74/172698081_d1f98f1d45_o.jpg

When they grab another bird they won't let go, the serrated bill has me kinda curious now also

some are super saw like

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cLCXD0hpWiI/VEcko4cFLGI/AAAAAAAACIM/NUCug7s_M94/s1600/ad+aracari.jpeg

while others are very smooth

I notice they do hammer wood and sometimes bite it, i guess they are related to wood peckers

HOLY CRAP!!!

That second one looks positively prehistoric... never seen one of those before!

What's his name? Hacksaw Jim?! "He protects the still!"