Lettered Aracari

Pteroglossus inscriptus

Named for the dark script-like markings on its bill. One of Amazonia's smallest aracaris, tucking fruit with precision.

Population: Not numerically quantified globally; described as fairly common but with a decreasing population trend, with forest habitat within its range having declined ~19.4% over three generations (suspected reduction of 1-19% over three generations)
Habitat: Lowland tropical forest including swamp/várzea forest, terra firme, secondary and gallery forest, dry forest and savanna edges, from sea level up to about 500-1,000 m
Fun fact: The Lettered Aracari gets its name from the squiggly, script-like pale/black markings etched across the upper mandible (culmen) of its bill, which vary between subspecies (the nominate has a yellow maxilla with black script marks, while subspecies humboldti has a nearly all-black mandible).
Range: Northern/central South America: Bolivia, Brazil (Amazon basin, nominate subspecies south of the Amazon in north-central Brazil; subspecies humboldti in western Brazil), Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru; extent of occurrence ~3,920,000 km²
Diet: Mainly fruit, supplemented with insects and other arthropods, and occasionally eggs or nestlings raided from other birds' nests
Size: 0.34 m

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