Tucancito Verde/Groove-billed Toucanet/Aulacorhynchus sulcatus

Nombre en español: Tucancito Verde

Nombre en inglés: Groove-billed Toucanet

Nombre científico: Aulacorhynchus sulcatus

Familia: Ramphastidae

Canto: Peter Boesman

El Tucancito verde, también conocido por Ave Pico de Frasco y Tucanete picosurcado, Aulacorhynchus sulcatus es una especie de la Familia Ramphastidae, nativa de Venezuela. Esta ave se puede encontrar entre 1900 y 1500 msnm.

Descripción

Su pico alcanza unos 7,6 cm de largo, en el macho es curvo y en las hembras es de menor dimensión. Mide aproximadamente 35 cm de longitud y pesa entre 150 y 200 g. Su plumaje es verde, pero alrededor de los ojos es azul celeste, la garganta es blanca (o azul clara en la subespecie A. s. erythrognathus). El pico es negro con marcas color castaño (o amarillo en A. s. calorhynchus).

Es por Decreto «Ave Emblemática del Municipio Chacao», en la Ciudad de Caracas, Venezuela.

Groove-billed toucanet

The groove-billed toucanet (Aulacorhynchus sulcatus) is a species of bird in the family Ramphastidae. It is found in mountains of north-eastern Colombia and northern Venezuela. Its natural habitat is subtropical and upper tropical humid forest and woodland, occasionally also occurring in gardens.

Taxonomy and systematics

The groove-billed toucanet was originally described in the genus Pteroglossus.

Subspecies

Three subspecies are recognized:

A. s. sulcatus – (Swainson, 1820): Found in northern Venezuela
A. s. erythrognathus – Gould, 1874: Formerly considered as a separate species. Found in north-eastern Venezuela
Yellow-billed toucanet (A. s. calorhynchus) – Gould, 1874: Formerly considered as a separate species until 2012. Some other authorities still treat it as a separate species. Found in north-western Venezuela and north-eastern Colombia

Description

It has a total length ca. 35 centimetres (14 in) and it weighs 150–200 grams (5.3–7.1 oz). It is, as are other members of its genus, mainly green. The throat is white (or pale bluish in the subspecies A. s. erythrognathus) and the ocular skin is blue. The bill is black with maroon markings, but the maroon is replaced by yellow in the yellow-billed toucanet. This distinctive subspecies is found in the western part of the species’ range, but is vocally similar to the other subspecies and hybrids are known from the region where it comes into contact with A. s. sulcatus. Genetic evidence suggests they should remain as subspecies of a single species.

It is generally fairly common in its range, and therefore considered Least Concern by BirdLife International. It occurs in several protected areas such as the Henri Pittier National Park in Venezuela.