Great Blue Heron vs Keel-billed Toucan
Ardea herodias compared with Ramphastos sulfuratus
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Attribute | Great Blue Heron | Keel-billed Toucan |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Ardea herodias | Ramphastos sulfuratus |
| Order | Pelecaniformes | Piciformes |
| Family | Ardeidae | Ramphastidae |
| Conservation Status | Least Concern | Least Concern |
| Length | 117.0 cm (46.1 in) | 50.0 cm (19.7 in) |
| Wingspan | 183.0 cm (72.0 in) | 56.0 cm (22.0 in) |
| Weight | 2400.0 g (84.66 oz) | 400.0 g (14.11 oz) |
| Diet | Primarily fish, also frogs, snakes, small mammals, insects, and other birds. Hunts by standing motionless … | Primarily fruit, supplemented with insects, lizards, eggs, and nestlings. Uses its long bill to reach … |
| Clutch Size | 2-7 | 1-4 |
| Population Trend | — | — |
Size Comparison
Habitat Comparison
Shared Habitats
None
Great Blue Heron only
Keel-billed Toucan only
Great Blue Heron
Wetlands of all types including marshes, swamps, riverbanks, lake edges, and coastal shores. Also hunts in fields and meadows.
Keel-billed Toucan
Tropical and subtropical lowland rainforests and forest edges from sea level to about 1,900 meters.
Song & Call Comparison
Great Blue Heron
Deep, harsh, croaking 'frahnk-frahnk' call in flight. Also gives low guttural grunts at the nest. Alarmed birds give repeated croaks. Mostly silent for such a large wader.
Keel-billed Toucan
Produces a repeated frog-like croaking 'prrrek-prrrek' or 'terrio-terrio'. Not melodic; the call resembles a mechanical rattle or frog. Also gives bill-clattering.
Geographic Range & Migration
Great Blue Heron
North and Central America from Alaska and southern Canada to the Caribbean and Galapagos Islands.
Keel-billed Toucan
Southern Mexico through Central America to northern Colombia and northwestern Venezuela.
Conservation Status
Great Blue Heron
Keel-billed Toucan
How to Tell Them Apart
Great Blue Heron
Blue-grey body with a white head bearing a broad black stripe extending to a long black plume. Rufous-brown thighs. In flight, the neck is folded into an S-shape.
Long, dagger-like yellowish bill
Keel-billed Toucan
Black body with a bright yellow throat and chest. Red undertail coverts. The enormous bill is green with orange sides, a blue patch, and a red tip.
Enormous, lightweight, multicolored bill up to 15 cm long — green, orange, blue, and red
About These Birds
Great Blue Heron
The great blue heron is the largest heron in North America, standing up to 1.4 meters tall. These patient hunters can stand motionless for extended periods before striking at prey with remarkable speed. They nest in large colonies called heronries, often returning to the same site year after year.
Keel-billed Toucan
The keel-billed toucan is the national bird of Belize and one of the most recognizable birds in the Neotropics. Its oversized bill, which can be a third of its body length, is actually very light due to its hollow honeycomb structure. Toucans roost communally, with up to six adults squeezing into a single tree cavity.