In nature, toucans (Ramphastos spp) eat mostly fruit but also consume insects, rodents, and invertebrates. Like mynahs, toucans are susceptible to iron storage disease. Their basic diet should be a low-iron pellet with a variety of fruits (apples, banana, grapes) offered daily. If the bird picks the fruit preferentially over the large toucan pellets, the pellets can either be crushed, or very small low-iron pellets can be mixed with the fruit, so the pellets adhere to the fruit and are ingested. Drinking water provides a novel challenge for these long-beaked birds. If they are not provided a large enough drinking pan, dehydration may occur.

Last full review/revision July 2011 by Joeke Nijboer, PhD; Teresa L. Lightfoot, DVM, DABVP (Avian)