
Family Ramphastidae
Keel-billed Toucan
Ramphastos sulfuratus
In Spanish: Tucán Pico Iris (Tucán Pico Arcoiris, Curré Negro)
- Resident
Caribbean Lowlands and Arenal first, then Monteverde and the Tárcoles river. All year.
Picture a toucan and you are probably picturing this one. The bill is green with orange sides and a red tip, and it makes up about a third of the bird's whole length.
We find it most in the Caribbean Lowlands and at Arenal, usually in the morning at the top of a bare tree, and ten of our hotspot pages name it, from the mangrove boat on the Tárcoles to the canals of Tortuguero. Watch one cross a clearing. Six to ten quick wingbeats, then a glide, then again, so the flight rises and dips in waves.
Where to see it
- Hotspot page
- Named place
- Nearby lodge (numbers match the cards)
- Arenal Volcano National Parkon the trails, with the Yellow-eared Toucanet and Great Curassow.
- The Mistico hanging bridges at Arenalthe bird most people want a clear look at from the bridges.
- La Selva Biological Station, Sarapiquíone of the two birds we bring people to Sarapiquí for, with the Great Green Macaw.Not on the map above: it sits too far away to show at this zoom.
- Tirimbina Biological Reserve, Sarapiquífrom the canopy bridge.Not on the map above: it sits too far away to show at this zoom.
- Tortuguero National Park and its canalsin the trees along the water.Not on the map above: it sits too far away to show at this zoom.
- Gandoca-Manzanillo and the Keköldi ridgethe toucan of this whole coast.Not on the map above: it sits too far away to show at this zoom.
- Monteverde Cloud Forest Reservein the cloud forest, with Lesson’s Motmot and the Collared Trogon.
- Curi-Cancha Reserve, Monteverdeon the same walk as Lesson’s Motmot and the Collared Trogon.
- Carara National Parkdown at the river, from the mangrove boat.Not on the map above: it sits too far away to show at this zoom.
- The Tárcoles River mangroves, by boatcrossing the river in front of the boat.Not on the map above: it sits too far away to show at this zoom.
Nearby lodges
Within 20 km of a place on the map, in the same zone.
- 1
Arenal Observatory Lodge0.1 km from Arenal Volcano National ParkSee the lodge - 2
Arenal Oasis Ecolodge & Wildlife Refuge10.9 km from The Mistico hanging bridges at ArenalSee the lodge - 3
La Selva Biological Station2.2 km from La Selva Biological Station, Sarapiquí (off the map)See the lodge - 4
Selva Verde Lodge6.8 km from Tirimbina Biological Reserve, Sarapiquí (off the map)See the lodge - 5
Pachira Lodge0.0 km from Tortuguero National Park (off the map)See the lodge
How to recognise it
About 42 to 55 cm with the bill, half again the length of a school ruler or more. Mainly black, with a yellow neck and chest, a narrow red band at the bottom edge of the yellow, and red under the tail. Male and female look alike apart from size. The bill settles it: green, orange and red. It is one of six toucans on the Costa Rican list, and the Yellow-throated Toucan, bigger and darker, is often on the same branch. The calls are croaks, something like grr, trrii and rrrk, and a loud male can be heard a kilometre away. In 2018 researchers in Costa Rica watched one eat carrion, possibly the first toucan seen doing it.
Where it lives
The canopy of lowland and foothill rainforest, up to about 1,900 m. In Costa Rica we find it across the Caribbean Lowlands from Sarapiquí to Tortuguero and the south Caribbean coast, at Arenal, in Monteverde's cloud forest, and along the Tárcoles river on the Pacific.
When to see it
All year.
Trips that find it
- Best of Birding in Costa Rica9 to 10 nightsSee the trip
- Dancing with Quetzals11 nightsSee the trip
- Birding in Costa Rica's Eco-Zones11 nightsSee the trip
- Best of Birding in Costa Rica's Caribbean9 nightsSee the trip
- Caribbean Lowlands Birding Tour11 nightsSee the trip
- Birding in Costa Rica's Northern Zone11 nightsSee the trip
- Birding in Costa Rica's Nicoya Peninsula11 nightsSee the trip
- Birding in Costa Rica's Top Three Destinations9 nightsSee the trip
- The Southern Highlands and Pacific9 nightsSee the trip
- Nature Birding TourSee the trip
- Costa Rica's Top Birding Spots11 nightsSee the trip
- Costa Rica Classic Birding, All Inclusive8 nightsSee the trip
Tell us when you are travelling and our team in Costa Rica builds the trip around the birds you want to see.
Plan my birding tripHow we know this 1 sources, each read on the date shown
- Wikipedia: Keel-billed toucan read 4 November 2026
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keel-billed_toucan