#guatamala — Public Fediverse posts

Keel-billed Toucan Ramphastos sulfuratus

Keel-billed Toucan Ramphastos sulfuratus

IUCN Red List Status: Near Threatened

Locations: Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Venezuela

Found in tropical rainforests and lowland jungles from southern Mexico through Central America to north-western South America.

The Keel-billed #Toucan, with their dazzling rainbow-coloured bills and bold black-and-yellow plumage, are one of the most iconic #birds of Central and #SouthAmerica. Listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List, this species of spectacular #bird is facing steady declines due to #palmoil #soy and #meat #deforestation, #hunting, and capture for the illegal pet trade. The destruction of humid forest canopies — especially for cattle grazing and monocultures like palm oil — is pushing this vibrant forest specialist closer to extinction. Protect the colourful creatures of the Amazonian rainforest canopies! Every time you shop be #vegan and #BoycottPalmOil #Boycott4Wildlife

Showing up with a riot of colour and croaking, Keel-billed #Toucans 🌈✨🦜 are nature’s works of art. Help them survive against #palmoil and meat #deforestation in #Colombia and #Guatemala. Be #vegan and #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife @palmoildetect https://palmoildetectives.com/2026/04/05/keel-billed-toucan-ramphastos-sulfuratus/

Iconic #birds of #Venezuela 🇻🇪 #Mexico 🇲🇽 #Honduras 🇭🇳 Keel-billed #Toucans are rainbow flocks of rainforest joy! 🦜🐦🪽 Help them survive be #vegan and call out #poaching and the illegal pet trade #Boycottpalmoil 🌴❌ #Boycott4Wildlife @palmoildetect https://palmoildetectives.com/2026/04/05/keel-billed-toucan-ramphastos-sulfuratus/

https://youtu.be/yPM7uV9kL24

Appearance & Behaviour

The Keel-billed Toucan is impossible to miss. They are strikingly colourful birds, with black plumage, a vivid yellow throat, crimson tail-tip, and turquoise legs. Their oversized, multi-hued bill — lime green, orange, and cherry red — can reach up to 15 cm long but remains surprisingly lightweight thanks to a hollow keratin structure.

Highly social, they travel in small groups of 6 to 12 individuals, calling to each other with croaks and yelps as they glide between trees. They nest and sleep in tight tree cavities, often tucking their beaks and tails under their bodies to conserve space and heat. Recent research also shows they can detect fruit using their sense of smell — a rare trait in birds, highlighting their complex foraging behaviour.

Threats

Deforestation for agriculture and cattle ranching

Throughout their range, particularly in Mexico, Honduras, and Colombia, large areas of tropical rainforest are being cleared for cattle grazing, soy plantations, and subsistence farming. These forest clearances remove vital canopy nesting trees and reduce food availability, especially for highly frugivorous birds like the Keel-billed Toucan. Habitat fragmentation also isolates populations, reducing genetic diversity and increasing vulnerability to local extinction.

Palm oil and soy monocultures and forest degradation

Although not traditionally associated with Central America, palm oil cultivation is rapidly expanding in regions like Honduras, Guatemala, and Colombia. These monocultures replace biodiverse forests with uniform, sterile plantations where toucans cannot nest or forage effectively. The clearing of tropical forest for palm oil is often accompanied by illegal logging, fire, and pesticide use, further degrading the ecosystem. Loss of tree cavities and fruiting species is directly linked to toucan population declines.

Hunting for meat and beak trade

In rural regions, toucans are hunted for their meat and their colourful beaks, which are sold as ornaments or used in traditional ceremonies. Though this practice is illegal in many countries, weak enforcement allows it to persist. The slow flight and conspicuous colours of the Keel-billed Toucan make them easy targets. As mature adults are most often targeted, these killings reduce breeding success and destabilise family groups.

Capture for the illegal pet trade

The Keel-billed Toucan is a sought-after species in the illegal exotic bird trade. Chicks are taken from nests and sold in pet markets across Latin America, often dying during capture or transport. Adults are also captured and kept in cramped cages, where they frequently suffer from iron storage disease (hemochromatosis) due to improper diets. Online wildlife trafficking has made it easier for these birds to be bought and sold internationally with little oversight.

Climate change and drought-related food shortages

Shifting rainfall patterns and increased dry seasons caused by climate change are altering fruiting cycles in tropical forests. For a bird so reliant on fruit, this poses a serious threat. Prolonged droughts can lead to localised starvation and reduce breeding success. With fragmented forests unable to support movement between food-rich areas, toucan populations may collapse in drier regions over time.

Geographic Range

Keel-billed Toucans are found in: Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia and Venezuela. They inhabit humid tropical and subtropical rainforests, ranging from sea level to 1,500 metres. While they can forage in degraded forests and plantations, they rely on undisturbed primary canopy for nesting and social cohesion. Populations are becoming increasingly fragmented as deforestation escalates.

Diet

Keel-billed Toucans are frugivores, but opportunistically omnivorous. They consume a wide range of soft fruits, tossing them into the air to swallow whole. Their dextrous bills help them reach fruit on thin outer branches inaccessible to other birds.

Their diet also includes insects, small lizards, eggs, and nestlings. In studies conducted in Costa Rica, toucans were shown to actively use olfactory cues — specifically, the scent of ripe banana and papaya — to locate food, suggesting their sense of smell plays a more important role in foraging than previously believed.

Mating and Reproduction

Keel-billed Toucans nest in existing tree cavities, laying between 1 to 4 white eggs. Both male and female take turns incubating the eggs and feeding the chicks once they hatch. Chicks are born blind and featherless with thick heel pads to protect them in the pit-covered nests. They remain in the nest for 8–9 weeks until their bills fully develop and they are ready to fledge.

These birds breed once annually, timed with fruiting seasons in tropical forests. Family groups share parenting responsibilities and maintain long-term bonds, often engaging in bill jousting and food-sharing behaviours.

FAQs

How many Keel-billed Toucans are left in the wild?

The global population is estimated to be between 50,000 and 499,999 mature individuals (Partners in Flight, 2019). However, numbers are declining rapidly, with up to 20–29% projected loss in the next three generations due to habitat destruction and hunting (BirdLife International, 2020).

Where do Keel-billed Toucans live?

They live in humid tropical forests across Mexico, Central America, and northern South America, ranging as far south as Colombia and Venezuela. They prefer the canopy and upper midstorey of primary forests but are increasingly forced into degraded habitats.

Why are Keel-billed Toucans endangered?

They are primarily threatened by deforestation for agriculture, palm oil and cattle ranching, as well as illegal pet trade and hunting. Their populations are declining faster than tree cover loss alone would suggest, due to their sensitivity to forest degradation and reliance on cavity-nesting trees.

Do Keel-billed Toucans make good pets?

No. Capturing and caging toucans is cruel and drives illegal wildlife trade. They suffer from disease, stress, and a short lifespan in captivity. Keeping them as pets contributes to population decline and ecosystem collapse. If you love toucans, help protect them in the wild — never buy or share content encouraging exotic pet ownership.

Take Action!

Help save the Keel-billed Toucan from extinction. Never buy exotic birds or support facilities that trade in wild animals. Boycott palm oil, beef, and soy products. Support forest restoration and indigenous-led protection of tropical canopies. Raise your voice to defend one of the most colourful birds on Earth. #BoycottPalmOil #Boycott4Wildlife #Vegan #BoycottMeat

Support Keel-billed Toucans by going vegan and boycotting palm oil in the supermarket, it’s the #Boycott4Wildlife

Support the conservation of this species

This animal has no protections in place. Read about other forgotten species here. Create art to support this forgotten animal or raise awareness about them by sharing this post and using the #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife hashtags on social media. Also you can boycott palm oil in the supermarket.

Further Information

BirdLife International. 2021. Ramphastos sulfuratus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2021: e.T22682102A168670038. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2021-3.RLTS.T22682102A168670038.en. Accessed on 17 April 2025.

Hernández, M. C., Villada, A. M., & Barja, I. (2022). Onto the sense of smell in macaws, amazons and toucans: Can they use volatile cues of fruits to make foraging decisions? Integrative Zoology, 17(6), 1003–1020. https://doi.org/10.1111/1749-4877.12694

How can I help the #Boycott4Wildlife?

Take Action in Five Ways

1. Join the #Boycott4Wildlife on social media and subscribe to stay in the loop: Share posts from this website to your own network on Twitter, Mastadon, Instagram, Facebook and Youtube using the hashtags #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife.

• Twitter
• Facebook
• Instagram
• WordPress
• YouTube
• Mail
• Mastodon

Enter your email address

Sign Up

2. Contribute stories: Academics, conservationists, scientists, indigenous rights advocates and animal rights advocates working to expose the corruption of the palm oil industry or to save animals can contribute stories to the website.

Wildlife Artist Juanchi Pérez

Mel Lumby: Dedicated Devotee to Borneo’s Living Beings

Anthropologist and Author Dr Sophie Chao

Health Physician Dr Evan Allen

The World’s Most Loved Cup: A Social, Ethical & Environmental History of Coffee by Aviary Doert

How do we stop the world’s ecosystems from going into a death spiral? A #SteadyState Economy

3. Supermarket sleuthing: Next time you’re in the supermarket, take photos of products containing palm oil. Share these to social media along with the hashtags to call out the greenwashing and ecocide of the brands who use palm oil. You can also take photos of palm oil free products and congratulate brands when they go palm oil free.

https://twitter.com/CuriousApe4/status/1526136783557529600?s=20

https://twitter.com/PhillDixon1/status/1749010345555788144?s=20

https://twitter.com/mugabe139/status/1678027567977078784?s=20

4. Take to the streets: Get in touch with Palm Oil Detectives to find out more.

5. Donate: Make a one-off or monthly donation to Palm Oil Detectives as a way of saying thank you and to help pay for ongoing running costs of the website and social media campaigns. Donate here

Learn about other animals endangered by palm oil and other agriculture

Asian Small-clawed Otter Aonyx cinereus

Marsupials thought extinct for 6,000 years found in West Papua

Gursky’s Spectral Tarsier Tarsius spectrumgurskyae

Sunda Flying Lemur Galeopterus variegatus

Western Parotia Parotia sefilata

Capped Langur Trachypithecus pileatus

Learn about “sustainable” palm oil greenwashing

Read more about RSPO greenwashing

A 2019 World Health Organisation (WHO) report into the palm oil industry and RSPO finds extensive greenwashing of palm oil deforestation and the murder of endangered animals (i.e. biodiversity loss)

Keel-billed Toucan Ramphastos sulfuratus

Keel-billed Toucan Ramphastos sulfuratus

IUCN Red List Status: Near Threatened

Locations: Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Venezuela

Found in tropical rainforests and lowland jungles from southern Mexico through Central America to north-western South America.

The Keel-billed #Toucan, with their dazzling rainbow-coloured bills and bold black-and-yellow plumage, are one of the most iconic #birds of Central and #SouthAmerica. Listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List, this species of spectacular #bird is facing steady declines due to #palmoil #soy and #meat #deforestation, #hunting, and capture for the illegal pet trade. The destruction of humid forest canopies — especially for cattle grazing and monocultures like palm oil — is pushing this vibrant forest specialist closer to extinction. Protect the colourful creatures of the Amazonian rainforest canopies! Every time you shop be #vegan and #BoycottPalmOil #Boycott4Wildlife

Showing up with a riot of colour and croaking, Keel-billed #Toucans 🌈✨🦜 are nature’s works of art. Help them survive against #palmoil and meat #deforestation in #Colombia and #Guatemala. Be #vegan and #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife @palmoildetect https://palmoildetectives.com/2026/04/05/keel-billed-toucan-ramphastos-sulfuratus/

Iconic #birds of #Venezuela 🇻🇪 #Mexico 🇲🇽 #Honduras 🇭🇳 Keel-billed #Toucans are rainbow flocks of rainforest joy! 🦜🐦🪽 Help them survive be #vegan and call out #poaching and the illegal pet trade #Boycottpalmoil 🌴❌ #Boycott4Wildlife @palmoildetect https://palmoildetectives.com/2026/04/05/keel-billed-toucan-ramphastos-sulfuratus/

https://youtu.be/yPM7uV9kL24

Appearance & Behaviour

The Keel-billed Toucan is impossible to miss. They are strikingly colourful birds, with black plumage, a vivid yellow throat, crimson tail-tip, and turquoise legs. Their oversized, multi-hued bill — lime green, orange, and cherry red — can reach up to 15 cm long but remains surprisingly lightweight thanks to a hollow keratin structure.

Highly social, they travel in small groups of 6 to 12 individuals, calling to each other with croaks and yelps as they glide between trees. They nest and sleep in tight tree cavities, often tucking their beaks and tails under their bodies to conserve space and heat. Recent research also shows they can detect fruit using their sense of smell — a rare trait in birds, highlighting their complex foraging behaviour.

Threats

Deforestation for agriculture and cattle ranching

Throughout their range, particularly in Mexico, Honduras, and Colombia, large areas of tropical rainforest are being cleared for cattle grazing, soy plantations, and subsistence farming. These forest clearances remove vital canopy nesting trees and reduce food availability, especially for highly frugivorous birds like the Keel-billed Toucan. Habitat fragmentation also isolates populations, reducing genetic diversity and increasing vulnerability to local extinction.

Palm oil and soy monocultures and forest degradation

Although not traditionally associated with Central America, palm oil cultivation is rapidly expanding in regions like Honduras, Guatemala, and Colombia. These monocultures replace biodiverse forests with uniform, sterile plantations where toucans cannot nest or forage effectively. The clearing of tropical forest for palm oil is often accompanied by illegal logging, fire, and pesticide use, further degrading the ecosystem. Loss of tree cavities and fruiting species is directly linked to toucan population declines.

Hunting for meat and beak trade

In rural regions, toucans are hunted for their meat and their colourful beaks, which are sold as ornaments or used in traditional ceremonies. Though this practice is illegal in many countries, weak enforcement allows it to persist. The slow flight and conspicuous colours of the Keel-billed Toucan make them easy targets. As mature adults are most often targeted, these killings reduce breeding success and destabilise family groups.

Capture for the illegal pet trade

The Keel-billed Toucan is a sought-after species in the illegal exotic bird trade. Chicks are taken from nests and sold in pet markets across Latin America, often dying during capture or transport. Adults are also captured and kept in cramped cages, where they frequently suffer from iron storage disease (hemochromatosis) due to improper diets. Online wildlife trafficking has made it easier for these birds to be bought and sold internationally with little oversight.

Climate change and drought-related food shortages

Shifting rainfall patterns and increased dry seasons caused by climate change are altering fruiting cycles in tropical forests. For a bird so reliant on fruit, this poses a serious threat. Prolonged droughts can lead to localised starvation and reduce breeding success. With fragmented forests unable to support movement between food-rich areas, toucan populations may collapse in drier regions over time.

Geographic Range

Keel-billed Toucans are found in: Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia and Venezuela. They inhabit humid tropical and subtropical rainforests, ranging from sea level to 1,500 metres. While they can forage in degraded forests and plantations, they rely on undisturbed primary canopy for nesting and social cohesion. Populations are becoming increasingly fragmented as deforestation escalates.

Diet

Keel-billed Toucans are frugivores, but opportunistically omnivorous. They consume a wide range of soft fruits, tossing them into the air to swallow whole. Their dextrous bills help them reach fruit on thin outer branches inaccessible to other birds.

Their diet also includes insects, small lizards, eggs, and nestlings. In studies conducted in Costa Rica, toucans were shown to actively use olfactory cues — specifically, the scent of ripe banana and papaya — to locate food, suggesting their sense of smell plays a more important role in foraging than previously believed.

Mating and Reproduction

Keel-billed Toucans nest in existing tree cavities, laying between 1 to 4 white eggs. Both male and female take turns incubating the eggs and feeding the chicks once they hatch. Chicks are born blind and featherless with thick heel pads to protect them in the pit-covered nests. They remain in the nest for 8–9 weeks until their bills fully develop and they are ready to fledge.

These birds breed once annually, timed with fruiting seasons in tropical forests. Family groups share parenting responsibilities and maintain long-term bonds, often engaging in bill jousting and food-sharing behaviours.

FAQs

How many Keel-billed Toucans are left in the wild?

The global population is estimated to be between 50,000 and 499,999 mature individuals (Partners in Flight, 2019). However, numbers are declining rapidly, with up to 20–29% projected loss in the next three generations due to habitat destruction and hunting (BirdLife International, 2020).

Where do Keel-billed Toucans live?

They live in humid tropical forests across Mexico, Central America, and northern South America, ranging as far south as Colombia and Venezuela. They prefer the canopy and upper midstorey of primary forests but are increasingly forced into degraded habitats.

Why are Keel-billed Toucans endangered?

They are primarily threatened by deforestation for agriculture, palm oil and cattle ranching, as well as illegal pet trade and hunting. Their populations are declining faster than tree cover loss alone would suggest, due to their sensitivity to forest degradation and reliance on cavity-nesting trees.

Do Keel-billed Toucans make good pets?

No. Capturing and caging toucans is cruel and drives illegal wildlife trade. They suffer from disease, stress, and a short lifespan in captivity. Keeping them as pets contributes to population decline and ecosystem collapse. If you love toucans, help protect them in the wild — never buy or share content encouraging exotic pet ownership.

Take Action!

Help save the Keel-billed Toucan from extinction. Never buy exotic birds or support facilities that trade in wild animals. Boycott palm oil, beef, and soy products. Support forest restoration and indigenous-led protection of tropical canopies. Raise your voice to defend one of the most colourful birds on Earth. #BoycottPalmOil #Boycott4Wildlife #Vegan #BoycottMeat

Support Keel-billed Toucans by going vegan and boycotting palm oil in the supermarket, it’s the #Boycott4Wildlife

Support the conservation of this species

This animal has no protections in place. Read about other forgotten species here. Create art to support this forgotten animal or raise awareness about them by sharing this post and using the #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife hashtags on social media. Also you can boycott palm oil in the supermarket.

Further Information

BirdLife International. 2021. Ramphastos sulfuratus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2021: e.T22682102A168670038. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2021-3.RLTS.T22682102A168670038.en. Accessed on 17 April 2025.

Hernández, M. C., Villada, A. M., & Barja, I. (2022). Onto the sense of smell in macaws, amazons and toucans: Can they use volatile cues of fruits to make foraging decisions? Integrative Zoology, 17(6), 1003–1020. https://doi.org/10.1111/1749-4877.12694

How can I help the #Boycott4Wildlife?

Take Action in Five Ways

1. Join the #Boycott4Wildlife on social media and subscribe to stay in the loop: Share posts from this website to your own network on Twitter, Mastadon, Instagram, Facebook and Youtube using the hashtags #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife.

• Twitter
• Facebook
• Instagram
• WordPress
• YouTube
• Mail
• Mastodon

Enter your email address

Sign Up

2. Contribute stories: Academics, conservationists, scientists, indigenous rights advocates and animal rights advocates working to expose the corruption of the palm oil industry or to save animals can contribute stories to the website.

Wildlife Artist Juanchi Pérez

Mel Lumby: Dedicated Devotee to Borneo’s Living Beings

Anthropologist and Author Dr Sophie Chao

Health Physician Dr Evan Allen

The World’s Most Loved Cup: A Social, Ethical & Environmental History of Coffee by Aviary Doert

How do we stop the world’s ecosystems from going into a death spiral? A #SteadyState Economy

3. Supermarket sleuthing: Next time you’re in the supermarket, take photos of products containing palm oil. Share these to social media along with the hashtags to call out the greenwashing and ecocide of the brands who use palm oil. You can also take photos of palm oil free products and congratulate brands when they go palm oil free.

https://twitter.com/CuriousApe4/status/1526136783557529600?s=20

https://twitter.com/PhillDixon1/status/1749010345555788144?s=20

https://twitter.com/mugabe139/status/1678027567977078784?s=20

4. Take to the streets: Get in touch with Palm Oil Detectives to find out more.

5. Donate: Make a one-off or monthly donation to Palm Oil Detectives as a way of saying thank you and to help pay for ongoing running costs of the website and social media campaigns. Donate here

Learn about other animals endangered by palm oil and other agriculture

Keel-billed Toucan Ramphastos sulfuratus

Asian Small-clawed Otter Aonyx cinereus

Marsupials thought extinct for 6,000 years found in West Papua

Gursky’s Spectral Tarsier Tarsius spectrumgurskyae

Sunda Flying Lemur Galeopterus variegatus

Western Parotia Parotia sefilata

Learn about “sustainable” palm oil greenwashing

Read more about RSPO greenwashing

A 2019 World Health Organisation (WHO) report into the palm oil industry and RSPO finds extensive greenwashing of palm oil deforestation and the murder of endangered animals (i.e. biodiversity loss)

Keel-billed Toucan Ramphastos sulfuratus

Keel-billed Toucan Ramphastos sulfuratus

IUCN Red List Status: Near Threatened

Locations: Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Venezuela

Found in tropical rainforests and lowland jungles from southern Mexico through Central America to north-western South America.

The Keel-billed #Toucan, with their dazzling rainbow-coloured bills and bold black-and-yellow plumage, are one of the most iconic #birds of Central and #SouthAmerica. Listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List, this species of spectacular #bird is facing steady declines due to #palmoil #soy and #meat #deforestation, #hunting, and capture for the illegal pet trade. The destruction of humid forest canopies — especially for cattle grazing and monocultures like palm oil — is pushing this vibrant forest specialist closer to extinction. Protect the colourful creatures of the Amazonian rainforest canopies! Every time you shop be #vegan and #BoycottPalmOil #Boycott4Wildlife

Showing up with a riot of colour and croaking, Keel-billed #Toucans 🌈✨🦜 are nature’s works of art. Help them survive against #palmoil and meat #deforestation in #Colombia and #Guatemala. Be #vegan and #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife @palmoildetect https://palmoildetectives.com/2026/04/05/keel-billed-toucan-ramphastos-sulfuratus/

Iconic #birds of #Venezuela 🇻🇪 #Mexico 🇲🇽 #Honduras 🇭🇳 Keel-billed #Toucans are rainbow flocks of rainforest joy! 🦜🐦🪽 Help them survive be #vegan and call out #poaching and the illegal pet trade #Boycottpalmoil 🌴❌ #Boycott4Wildlife @palmoildetect https://palmoildetectives.com/2026/04/05/keel-billed-toucan-ramphastos-sulfuratus/

https://youtu.be/yPM7uV9kL24

Appearance & Behaviour

The Keel-billed Toucan is impossible to miss. They are strikingly colourful birds, with black plumage, a vivid yellow throat, crimson tail-tip, and turquoise legs. Their oversized, multi-hued bill — lime green, orange, and cherry red — can reach up to 15 cm long but remains surprisingly lightweight thanks to a hollow keratin structure.

Highly social, they travel in small groups of 6 to 12 individuals, calling to each other with croaks and yelps as they glide between trees. They nest and sleep in tight tree cavities, often tucking their beaks and tails under their bodies to conserve space and heat. Recent research also shows they can detect fruit using their sense of smell — a rare trait in birds, highlighting their complex foraging behaviour.

Threats

Deforestation for agriculture and cattle ranching

Throughout their range, particularly in Mexico, Honduras, and Colombia, large areas of tropical rainforest are being cleared for cattle grazing, soy plantations, and subsistence farming. These forest clearances remove vital canopy nesting trees and reduce food availability, especially for highly frugivorous birds like the Keel-billed Toucan. Habitat fragmentation also isolates populations, reducing genetic diversity and increasing vulnerability to local extinction.

Palm oil and soy monocultures and forest degradation

Although not traditionally associated with Central America, palm oil cultivation is rapidly expanding in regions like Honduras, Guatemala, and Colombia. These monocultures replace biodiverse forests with uniform, sterile plantations where toucans cannot nest or forage effectively. The clearing of tropical forest for palm oil is often accompanied by illegal logging, fire, and pesticide use, further degrading the ecosystem. Loss of tree cavities and fruiting species is directly linked to toucan population declines.

Hunting for meat and beak trade

In rural regions, toucans are hunted for their meat and their colourful beaks, which are sold as ornaments or used in traditional ceremonies. Though this practice is illegal in many countries, weak enforcement allows it to persist. The slow flight and conspicuous colours of the Keel-billed Toucan make them easy targets. As mature adults are most often targeted, these killings reduce breeding success and destabilise family groups.

Capture for the illegal pet trade

The Keel-billed Toucan is a sought-after species in the illegal exotic bird trade. Chicks are taken from nests and sold in pet markets across Latin America, often dying during capture or transport. Adults are also captured and kept in cramped cages, where they frequently suffer from iron storage disease (hemochromatosis) due to improper diets. Online wildlife trafficking has made it easier for these birds to be bought and sold internationally with little oversight.

Climate change and drought-related food shortages

Shifting rainfall patterns and increased dry seasons caused by climate change are altering fruiting cycles in tropical forests. For a bird so reliant on fruit, this poses a serious threat. Prolonged droughts can lead to localised starvation and reduce breeding success. With fragmented forests unable to support movement between food-rich areas, toucan populations may collapse in drier regions over time.

Geographic Range

Keel-billed Toucans are found in: Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia and Venezuela. They inhabit humid tropical and subtropical rainforests, ranging from sea level to 1,500 metres. While they can forage in degraded forests and plantations, they rely on undisturbed primary canopy for nesting and social cohesion. Populations are becoming increasingly fragmented as deforestation escalates.

Diet

Keel-billed Toucans are frugivores, but opportunistically omnivorous. They consume a wide range of soft fruits, tossing them into the air to swallow whole. Their dextrous bills help them reach fruit on thin outer branches inaccessible to other birds.

Their diet also includes insects, small lizards, eggs, and nestlings. In studies conducted in Costa Rica, toucans were shown to actively use olfactory cues — specifically, the scent of ripe banana and papaya — to locate food, suggesting their sense of smell plays a more important role in foraging than previously believed.

Mating and Reproduction

Keel-billed Toucans nest in existing tree cavities, laying between 1 to 4 white eggs. Both male and female take turns incubating the eggs and feeding the chicks once they hatch. Chicks are born blind and featherless with thick heel pads to protect them in the pit-covered nests. They remain in the nest for 8–9 weeks until their bills fully develop and they are ready to fledge.

These birds breed once annually, timed with fruiting seasons in tropical forests. Family groups share parenting responsibilities and maintain long-term bonds, often engaging in bill jousting and food-sharing behaviours.

FAQs

How many Keel-billed Toucans are left in the wild?

The global population is estimated to be between 50,000 and 499,999 mature individuals (Partners in Flight, 2019). However, numbers are declining rapidly, with up to 20–29% projected loss in the next three generations due to habitat destruction and hunting (BirdLife International, 2020).

Where do Keel-billed Toucans live?

They live in humid tropical forests across Mexico, Central America, and northern South America, ranging as far south as Colombia and Venezuela. They prefer the canopy and upper midstorey of primary forests but are increasingly forced into degraded habitats.

Why are Keel-billed Toucans endangered?

They are primarily threatened by deforestation for agriculture, palm oil and cattle ranching, as well as illegal pet trade and hunting. Their populations are declining faster than tree cover loss alone would suggest, due to their sensitivity to forest degradation and reliance on cavity-nesting trees.

Do Keel-billed Toucans make good pets?

No. Capturing and caging toucans is cruel and drives illegal wildlife trade. They suffer from disease, stress, and a short lifespan in captivity. Keeping them as pets contributes to population decline and ecosystem collapse. If you love toucans, help protect them in the wild — never buy or share content encouraging exotic pet ownership.

Take Action!

Help save the Keel-billed Toucan from extinction. Never buy exotic birds or support facilities that trade in wild animals. Boycott palm oil, beef, and soy products. Support forest restoration and indigenous-led protection of tropical canopies. Raise your voice to defend one of the most colourful birds on Earth. #BoycottPalmOil #Boycott4Wildlife #Vegan #BoycottMeat

Support Keel-billed Toucans by going vegan and boycotting palm oil in the supermarket, it’s the #Boycott4Wildlife

Support the conservation of this species

This animal has no protections in place. Read about other forgotten species here. Create art to support this forgotten animal or raise awareness about them by sharing this post and using the #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife hashtags on social media. Also you can boycott palm oil in the supermarket.

Further Information

BirdLife International. 2021. Ramphastos sulfuratus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2021: e.T22682102A168670038. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2021-3.RLTS.T22682102A168670038.en. Accessed on 17 April 2025.

Hernández, M. C., Villada, A. M., & Barja, I. (2022). Onto the sense of smell in macaws, amazons and toucans: Can they use volatile cues of fruits to make foraging decisions? Integrative Zoology, 17(6), 1003–1020. https://doi.org/10.1111/1749-4877.12694

How can I help the #Boycott4Wildlife?

Take Action in Five Ways

1. Join the #Boycott4Wildlife on social media and subscribe to stay in the loop: Share posts from this website to your own network on Twitter, Mastadon, Instagram, Facebook and Youtube using the hashtags #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife.

• Twitter
• Facebook
• Instagram
• WordPress
• YouTube
• Mail
• Mastodon

Enter your email address

Sign Up

2. Contribute stories: Academics, conservationists, scientists, indigenous rights advocates and animal rights advocates working to expose the corruption of the palm oil industry or to save animals can contribute stories to the website.

Wildlife Artist Juanchi Pérez

Mel Lumby: Dedicated Devotee to Borneo’s Living Beings

Anthropologist and Author Dr Sophie Chao

Health Physician Dr Evan Allen

The World’s Most Loved Cup: A Social, Ethical & Environmental History of Coffee by Aviary Doert

How do we stop the world’s ecosystems from going into a death spiral? A #SteadyState Economy

3. Supermarket sleuthing: Next time you’re in the supermarket, take photos of products containing palm oil. Share these to social media along with the hashtags to call out the greenwashing and ecocide of the brands who use palm oil. You can also take photos of palm oil free products and congratulate brands when they go palm oil free.

https://twitter.com/CuriousApe4/status/1526136783557529600?s=20

https://twitter.com/PhillDixon1/status/1749010345555788144?s=20

https://twitter.com/mugabe139/status/1678027567977078784?s=20

4. Take to the streets: Get in touch with Palm Oil Detectives to find out more.

5. Donate: Make a one-off or monthly donation to Palm Oil Detectives as a way of saying thank you and to help pay for ongoing running costs of the website and social media campaigns. Donate here

Learn about other animals endangered by palm oil and other agriculture

Asian Small-clawed Otter Aonyx cinereus

Marsupials thought extinct for 6,000 years found in West Papua

Gursky’s Spectral Tarsier Tarsius spectrumgurskyae

Sunda Flying Lemur Galeopterus variegatus

Western Parotia Parotia sefilata

Capped Langur Trachypithecus pileatus

Learn about “sustainable” palm oil greenwashing

Read more about RSPO greenwashing

A 2019 World Health Organisation (WHO) report into the palm oil industry and RSPO finds extensive greenwashing of palm oil deforestation and the murder of endangered animals (i.e. biodiversity loss)

Keel-billed Toucan Ramphastos sulfuratus

Keel-billed Toucan Ramphastos sulfuratus

IUCN Red List Status: Near Threatened

Locations: Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Venezuela

Found in tropical rainforests and lowland jungles from southern Mexico through Central America to north-western South America.

The Keel-billed #Toucan, with their dazzling rainbow-coloured bills and bold black-and-yellow plumage, are one of the most iconic #birds of Central and #SouthAmerica. Listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List, this species of spectacular #bird is facing steady declines due to #palmoil #soy and #meat #deforestation, #hunting, and capture for the illegal pet trade. The destruction of humid forest canopies — especially for cattle grazing and monocultures like palm oil — is pushing this vibrant forest specialist closer to extinction. Protect the colourful creatures of the Amazonian rainforest canopies! Every time you shop be #vegan and #BoycottPalmOil #Boycott4Wildlife

Showing up with a riot of colour and croaking, Keel-billed #Toucans 🌈✨🦜 are nature’s works of art. Help them survive against #palmoil and meat #deforestation in #Colombia and #Guatemala. Be #vegan and #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife @palmoildetect https://palmoildetectives.com/2026/04/05/keel-billed-toucan-ramphastos-sulfuratus/

Iconic #birds of #Venezuela 🇻🇪 #Mexico 🇲🇽 #Honduras 🇭🇳 Keel-billed #Toucans are rainbow flocks of rainforest joy! 🦜🐦🪽 Help them survive be #vegan and call out #poaching and the illegal pet trade #Boycottpalmoil 🌴❌ #Boycott4Wildlife @palmoildetect https://palmoildetectives.com/2026/04/05/keel-billed-toucan-ramphastos-sulfuratus/

https://youtu.be/yPM7uV9kL24

Appearance & Behaviour

The Keel-billed Toucan is impossible to miss. They are strikingly colourful birds, with black plumage, a vivid yellow throat, crimson tail-tip, and turquoise legs. Their oversized, multi-hued bill — lime green, orange, and cherry red — can reach up to 15 cm long but remains surprisingly lightweight thanks to a hollow keratin structure.

Highly social, they travel in small groups of 6 to 12 individuals, calling to each other with croaks and yelps as they glide between trees. They nest and sleep in tight tree cavities, often tucking their beaks and tails under their bodies to conserve space and heat. Recent research also shows they can detect fruit using their sense of smell — a rare trait in birds, highlighting their complex foraging behaviour.

Threats

Deforestation for agriculture and cattle ranching

Throughout their range, particularly in Mexico, Honduras, and Colombia, large areas of tropical rainforest are being cleared for cattle grazing, soy plantations, and subsistence farming. These forest clearances remove vital canopy nesting trees and reduce food availability, especially for highly frugivorous birds like the Keel-billed Toucan. Habitat fragmentation also isolates populations, reducing genetic diversity and increasing vulnerability to local extinction.

Palm oil and soy monocultures and forest degradation

Although not traditionally associated with Central America, palm oil cultivation is rapidly expanding in regions like Honduras, Guatemala, and Colombia. These monocultures replace biodiverse forests with uniform, sterile plantations where toucans cannot nest or forage effectively. The clearing of tropical forest for palm oil is often accompanied by illegal logging, fire, and pesticide use, further degrading the ecosystem. Loss of tree cavities and fruiting species is directly linked to toucan population declines.

Hunting for meat and beak trade

In rural regions, toucans are hunted for their meat and their colourful beaks, which are sold as ornaments or used in traditional ceremonies. Though this practice is illegal in many countries, weak enforcement allows it to persist. The slow flight and conspicuous colours of the Keel-billed Toucan make them easy targets. As mature adults are most often targeted, these killings reduce breeding success and destabilise family groups.

Capture for the illegal pet trade

The Keel-billed Toucan is a sought-after species in the illegal exotic bird trade. Chicks are taken from nests and sold in pet markets across Latin America, often dying during capture or transport. Adults are also captured and kept in cramped cages, where they frequently suffer from iron storage disease (hemochromatosis) due to improper diets. Online wildlife trafficking has made it easier for these birds to be bought and sold internationally with little oversight.

Climate change and drought-related food shortages

Shifting rainfall patterns and increased dry seasons caused by climate change are altering fruiting cycles in tropical forests. For a bird so reliant on fruit, this poses a serious threat. Prolonged droughts can lead to localised starvation and reduce breeding success. With fragmented forests unable to support movement between food-rich areas, toucan populations may collapse in drier regions over time.

Geographic Range

Keel-billed Toucans are found in: Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia and Venezuela. They inhabit humid tropical and subtropical rainforests, ranging from sea level to 1,500 metres. While they can forage in degraded forests and plantations, they rely on undisturbed primary canopy for nesting and social cohesion. Populations are becoming increasingly fragmented as deforestation escalates.

Diet

Keel-billed Toucans are frugivores, but opportunistically omnivorous. They consume a wide range of soft fruits, tossing them into the air to swallow whole. Their dextrous bills help them reach fruit on thin outer branches inaccessible to other birds.

Their diet also includes insects, small lizards, eggs, and nestlings. In studies conducted in Costa Rica, toucans were shown to actively use olfactory cues — specifically, the scent of ripe banana and papaya — to locate food, suggesting their sense of smell plays a more important role in foraging than previously believed.

Mating and Reproduction

Keel-billed Toucans nest in existing tree cavities, laying between 1 to 4 white eggs. Both male and female take turns incubating the eggs and feeding the chicks once they hatch. Chicks are born blind and featherless with thick heel pads to protect them in the pit-covered nests. They remain in the nest for 8–9 weeks until their bills fully develop and they are ready to fledge.

These birds breed once annually, timed with fruiting seasons in tropical forests. Family groups share parenting responsibilities and maintain long-term bonds, often engaging in bill jousting and food-sharing behaviours.

FAQs

How many Keel-billed Toucans are left in the wild?

The global population is estimated to be between 50,000 and 499,999 mature individuals (Partners in Flight, 2019). However, numbers are declining rapidly, with up to 20–29% projected loss in the next three generations due to habitat destruction and hunting (BirdLife International, 2020).

Where do Keel-billed Toucans live?

They live in humid tropical forests across Mexico, Central America, and northern South America, ranging as far south as Colombia and Venezuela. They prefer the canopy and upper midstorey of primary forests but are increasingly forced into degraded habitats.

Why are Keel-billed Toucans endangered?

They are primarily threatened by deforestation for agriculture, palm oil and cattle ranching, as well as illegal pet trade and hunting. Their populations are declining faster than tree cover loss alone would suggest, due to their sensitivity to forest degradation and reliance on cavity-nesting trees.

Do Keel-billed Toucans make good pets?

No. Capturing and caging toucans is cruel and drives illegal wildlife trade. They suffer from disease, stress, and a short lifespan in captivity. Keeping them as pets contributes to population decline and ecosystem collapse. If you love toucans, help protect them in the wild — never buy or share content encouraging exotic pet ownership.

Take Action!

Help save the Keel-billed Toucan from extinction. Never buy exotic birds or support facilities that trade in wild animals. Boycott palm oil, beef, and soy products. Support forest restoration and indigenous-led protection of tropical canopies. Raise your voice to defend one of the most colourful birds on Earth. #BoycottPalmOil #Boycott4Wildlife #Vegan #BoycottMeat

Support Keel-billed Toucans by going vegan and boycotting palm oil in the supermarket, it’s the #Boycott4Wildlife

Support the conservation of this species

This animal has no protections in place. Read about other forgotten species here. Create art to support this forgotten animal or raise awareness about them by sharing this post and using the #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife hashtags on social media. Also you can boycott palm oil in the supermarket.

Further Information

BirdLife International. 2021. Ramphastos sulfuratus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2021: e.T22682102A168670038. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2021-3.RLTS.T22682102A168670038.en. Accessed on 17 April 2025.

Hernández, M. C., Villada, A. M., & Barja, I. (2022). Onto the sense of smell in macaws, amazons and toucans: Can they use volatile cues of fruits to make foraging decisions? Integrative Zoology, 17(6), 1003–1020. https://doi.org/10.1111/1749-4877.12694

How can I help the #Boycott4Wildlife?

Take Action in Five Ways

1. Join the #Boycott4Wildlife on social media and subscribe to stay in the loop: Share posts from this website to your own network on Twitter, Mastadon, Instagram, Facebook and Youtube using the hashtags #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife.

• Twitter
• Facebook
• Instagram
• WordPress
• YouTube
• Mail
• Mastodon

Enter your email address

Sign Up

2. Contribute stories: Academics, conservationists, scientists, indigenous rights advocates and animal rights advocates working to expose the corruption of the palm oil industry or to save animals can contribute stories to the website.

Wildlife Artist Juanchi Pérez

Mel Lumby: Dedicated Devotee to Borneo’s Living Beings

Anthropologist and Author Dr Sophie Chao

Health Physician Dr Evan Allen

The World’s Most Loved Cup: A Social, Ethical & Environmental History of Coffee by Aviary Doert

How do we stop the world’s ecosystems from going into a death spiral? A #SteadyState Economy

3. Supermarket sleuthing: Next time you’re in the supermarket, take photos of products containing palm oil. Share these to social media along with the hashtags to call out the greenwashing and ecocide of the brands who use palm oil. You can also take photos of palm oil free products and congratulate brands when they go palm oil free.

https://twitter.com/CuriousApe4/status/1526136783557529600?s=20

https://twitter.com/PhillDixon1/status/1749010345555788144?s=20

https://twitter.com/mugabe139/status/1678027567977078784?s=20

4. Take to the streets: Get in touch with Palm Oil Detectives to find out more.

5. Donate: Make a one-off or monthly donation to Palm Oil Detectives as a way of saying thank you and to help pay for ongoing running costs of the website and social media campaigns. Donate here

Learn about other animals endangered by palm oil and other agriculture

Asian Small-clawed Otter Aonyx cinereus

Marsupials thought extinct for 6,000 years found in West Papua

Gursky’s Spectral Tarsier Tarsius spectrumgurskyae

Sunda Flying Lemur Galeopterus variegatus

Western Parotia Parotia sefilata

Capped Langur Trachypithecus pileatus

Learn about “sustainable” palm oil greenwashing

Read more about RSPO greenwashing

A 2019 World Health Organisation (WHO) report into the palm oil industry and RSPO finds extensive greenwashing of palm oil deforestation and the murder of endangered animals (i.e. biodiversity loss)

Keel-billed Toucan Ramphastos sulfuratus

Keel-billed Toucan Ramphastos sulfuratus

IUCN Red List Status: Near Threatened

Locations: Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Venezuela

Found in tropical rainforests and lowland jungles from southern Mexico through Central America to north-western South America.

The Keel-billed #Toucan, with their dazzling rainbow-coloured bills and bold black-and-yellow plumage, are one of the most iconic #birds of Central and #SouthAmerica. Listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List, this species of spectacular #bird is facing steady declines due to #palmoil #soy and #meat #deforestation, #hunting, and capture for the illegal pet trade. The destruction of humid forest canopies — especially for cattle grazing and monocultures like palm oil — is pushing this vibrant forest specialist closer to extinction. Protect the colourful creatures of the Amazonian rainforest canopies! Every time you shop be #vegan and #BoycottPalmOil #Boycott4Wildlife

Showing up with a riot of colour and croaking, Keel-billed #Toucans 🌈✨🦜 are nature’s works of art. Help them survive against #palmoil and meat #deforestation in #Colombia and #Guatemala. Be #vegan and #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife @palmoildetect https://palmoildetectives.com/2026/04/05/keel-billed-toucan-ramphastos-sulfuratus/

Iconic #birds of #Venezuela 🇻🇪 #Mexico 🇲🇽 #Honduras 🇭🇳 Keel-billed #Toucans are rainbow flocks of rainforest joy! 🦜🐦🪽 Help them survive be #vegan and call out #poaching and the illegal pet trade #Boycottpalmoil 🌴❌ #Boycott4Wildlife @palmoildetect https://palmoildetectives.com/2026/04/05/keel-billed-toucan-ramphastos-sulfuratus/

https://youtu.be/yPM7uV9kL24

Appearance & Behaviour

The Keel-billed Toucan is impossible to miss. They are strikingly colourful birds, with black plumage, a vivid yellow throat, crimson tail-tip, and turquoise legs. Their oversized, multi-hued bill — lime green, orange, and cherry red — can reach up to 15 cm long but remains surprisingly lightweight thanks to a hollow keratin structure.

Highly social, they travel in small groups of 6 to 12 individuals, calling to each other with croaks and yelps as they glide between trees. They nest and sleep in tight tree cavities, often tucking their beaks and tails under their bodies to conserve space and heat. Recent research also shows they can detect fruit using their sense of smell — a rare trait in birds, highlighting their complex foraging behaviour.

Threats

Deforestation for agriculture and cattle ranching

Throughout their range, particularly in Mexico, Honduras, and Colombia, large areas of tropical rainforest are being cleared for cattle grazing, soy plantations, and subsistence farming. These forest clearances remove vital canopy nesting trees and reduce food availability, especially for highly frugivorous birds like the Keel-billed Toucan. Habitat fragmentation also isolates populations, reducing genetic diversity and increasing vulnerability to local extinction.

Palm oil and soy monocultures and forest degradation

Although not traditionally associated with Central America, palm oil cultivation is rapidly expanding in regions like Honduras, Guatemala, and Colombia. These monocultures replace biodiverse forests with uniform, sterile plantations where toucans cannot nest or forage effectively. The clearing of tropical forest for palm oil is often accompanied by illegal logging, fire, and pesticide use, further degrading the ecosystem. Loss of tree cavities and fruiting species is directly linked to toucan population declines.

Hunting for meat and beak trade

In rural regions, toucans are hunted for their meat and their colourful beaks, which are sold as ornaments or used in traditional ceremonies. Though this practice is illegal in many countries, weak enforcement allows it to persist. The slow flight and conspicuous colours of the Keel-billed Toucan make them easy targets. As mature adults are most often targeted, these killings reduce breeding success and destabilise family groups.

Capture for the illegal pet trade

The Keel-billed Toucan is a sought-after species in the illegal exotic bird trade. Chicks are taken from nests and sold in pet markets across Latin America, often dying during capture or transport. Adults are also captured and kept in cramped cages, where they frequently suffer from iron storage disease (hemochromatosis) due to improper diets. Online wildlife trafficking has made it easier for these birds to be bought and sold internationally with little oversight.

Climate change and drought-related food shortages

Shifting rainfall patterns and increased dry seasons caused by climate change are altering fruiting cycles in tropical forests. For a bird so reliant on fruit, this poses a serious threat. Prolonged droughts can lead to localised starvation and reduce breeding success. With fragmented forests unable to support movement between food-rich areas, toucan populations may collapse in drier regions over time.

Geographic Range

Keel-billed Toucans are found in: Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia and Venezuela. They inhabit humid tropical and subtropical rainforests, ranging from sea level to 1,500 metres. While they can forage in degraded forests and plantations, they rely on undisturbed primary canopy for nesting and social cohesion. Populations are becoming increasingly fragmented as deforestation escalates.

Diet

Keel-billed Toucans are frugivores, but opportunistically omnivorous. They consume a wide range of soft fruits, tossing them into the air to swallow whole. Their dextrous bills help them reach fruit on thin outer branches inaccessible to other birds.

Their diet also includes insects, small lizards, eggs, and nestlings. In studies conducted in Costa Rica, toucans were shown to actively use olfactory cues — specifically, the scent of ripe banana and papaya — to locate food, suggesting their sense of smell plays a more important role in foraging than previously believed.

Mating and Reproduction

Keel-billed Toucans nest in existing tree cavities, laying between 1 to 4 white eggs. Both male and female take turns incubating the eggs and feeding the chicks once they hatch. Chicks are born blind and featherless with thick heel pads to protect them in the pit-covered nests. They remain in the nest for 8–9 weeks until their bills fully develop and they are ready to fledge.

These birds breed once annually, timed with fruiting seasons in tropical forests. Family groups share parenting responsibilities and maintain long-term bonds, often engaging in bill jousting and food-sharing behaviours.

FAQs

How many Keel-billed Toucans are left in the wild?

The global population is estimated to be between 50,000 and 499,999 mature individuals (Partners in Flight, 2019). However, numbers are declining rapidly, with up to 20–29% projected loss in the next three generations due to habitat destruction and hunting (BirdLife International, 2020).

Where do Keel-billed Toucans live?

They live in humid tropical forests across Mexico, Central America, and northern South America, ranging as far south as Colombia and Venezuela. They prefer the canopy and upper midstorey of primary forests but are increasingly forced into degraded habitats.

Why are Keel-billed Toucans endangered?

They are primarily threatened by deforestation for agriculture, palm oil and cattle ranching, as well as illegal pet trade and hunting. Their populations are declining faster than tree cover loss alone would suggest, due to their sensitivity to forest degradation and reliance on cavity-nesting trees.

Do Keel-billed Toucans make good pets?

No. Capturing and caging toucans is cruel and drives illegal wildlife trade. They suffer from disease, stress, and a short lifespan in captivity. Keeping them as pets contributes to population decline and ecosystem collapse. If you love toucans, help protect them in the wild — never buy or share content encouraging exotic pet ownership.

Take Action!

Help save the Keel-billed Toucan from extinction. Never buy exotic birds or support facilities that trade in wild animals. Boycott palm oil, beef, and soy products. Support forest restoration and indigenous-led protection of tropical canopies. Raise your voice to defend one of the most colourful birds on Earth. #BoycottPalmOil #Boycott4Wildlife #Vegan #BoycottMeat

Support Keel-billed Toucans by going vegan and boycotting palm oil in the supermarket, it’s the #Boycott4Wildlife

Support the conservation of this species

This animal has no protections in place. Read about other forgotten species here. Create art to support this forgotten animal or raise awareness about them by sharing this post and using the #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife hashtags on social media. Also you can boycott palm oil in the supermarket.

Further Information

BirdLife International. 2021. Ramphastos sulfuratus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2021: e.T22682102A168670038. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2021-3.RLTS.T22682102A168670038.en. Accessed on 17 April 2025.

Hernández, M. C., Villada, A. M., & Barja, I. (2022). Onto the sense of smell in macaws, amazons and toucans: Can they use volatile cues of fruits to make foraging decisions? Integrative Zoology, 17(6), 1003–1020. https://doi.org/10.1111/1749-4877.12694

How can I help the #Boycott4Wildlife?

Take Action in Five Ways

1. Join the #Boycott4Wildlife on social media and subscribe to stay in the loop: Share posts from this website to your own network on Twitter, Mastadon, Instagram, Facebook and Youtube using the hashtags #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife.

• Twitter
• Facebook
• Instagram
• WordPress
• YouTube
• Mail
• Mastodon

Enter your email address

Sign Up

2. Contribute stories: Academics, conservationists, scientists, indigenous rights advocates and animal rights advocates working to expose the corruption of the palm oil industry or to save animals can contribute stories to the website.

Wildlife Artist Juanchi Pérez

Mel Lumby: Dedicated Devotee to Borneo’s Living Beings

Anthropologist and Author Dr Sophie Chao

Health Physician Dr Evan Allen

The World’s Most Loved Cup: A Social, Ethical & Environmental History of Coffee by Aviary Doert

How do we stop the world’s ecosystems from going into a death spiral? A #SteadyState Economy

3. Supermarket sleuthing: Next time you’re in the supermarket, take photos of products containing palm oil. Share these to social media along with the hashtags to call out the greenwashing and ecocide of the brands who use palm oil. You can also take photos of palm oil free products and congratulate brands when they go palm oil free.

https://twitter.com/CuriousApe4/status/1526136783557529600?s=20

https://twitter.com/PhillDixon1/status/1749010345555788144?s=20

https://twitter.com/mugabe139/status/1678027567977078784?s=20

4. Take to the streets: Get in touch with Palm Oil Detectives to find out more.

5. Donate: Make a one-off or monthly donation to Palm Oil Detectives as a way of saying thank you and to help pay for ongoing running costs of the website and social media campaigns. Donate here

Learn about other animals endangered by palm oil and other agriculture

Asian Small-clawed Otter Aonyx cinereus

Marsupials thought extinct for 6,000 years found in West Papua

Gursky’s Spectral Tarsier Tarsius spectrumgurskyae

Sunda Flying Lemur Galeopterus variegatus

Western Parotia Parotia sefilata

Capped Langur Trachypithecus pileatus

Learn about “sustainable” palm oil greenwashing

Read more about RSPO greenwashing

A 2019 World Health Organisation (WHO) report into the palm oil industry and RSPO finds extensive greenwashing of palm oil deforestation and the murder of endangered animals (i.e. biodiversity loss)

...if the "nation" is so moral why does nearly every major atrocity have the #uspol stamp and seal on it?

...remember the #guatamala #genocide aided by reagan?

no, me either cos i was a baby, but entire towns were slaughtered and "disappeared" with uskkk aligned interests...which were NOT about "cold war communism"

...once again it was #economic #exploitation for agricultural lands (united fruit co, coffee and sugar plantations) and to suppress labour movements against foreign #corporations.

#torture #Cruelty #CECOT #AlbregoGarcia #Guatamala #Deportations #HumanRights #Alt

Aaron Parnas 7/2/25
KILMAR ALBREGO GARCIA ALLEGED TORTURED

Orange-breasted Falcon Falco deiroleucus

Orange-breasted Falcon Falco deiroleucus

Near Threatened

Extant (resident)

Belize; Venezuela, Bolivia

Extant (possibly breeding)

Argentina; Bolivia, Brazil; Colombia; Ecuador; Guatemala; Guyana; Honduras; Mexico; Nicaragua; Panama; Paraguay; Peru; Suriname; Trinidad and Tobago.

Possibly extinct

Costa Rica

The vibrant Orange-breasted #Falcon Falco deiroleucus soars through the skies of Central and #SouthAmerica. With their striking orange and black plumage and powerful and agile hunting skills, these falcons are truly a marvel to behold. Sadly, these #birds face significant threats from #palmoil, #goldmining, #soy and #meat deforestation. You can help protect these magnificent birds every time you shop. Make sure that you #BoycottPalmOil #BoycottGold and #BoycottMeat to help them survive! It’s the #Boycott4Wildlife.

https://youtu.be/fO7KLTqyS68?si=qKAa5kr9DecSXzMz

Powerful rulers of the skies in #Colombia #Brazil and #Ecuador, Orange-breasted Falcons 🦅 face threats from #palmoil #meat #soy and #gold #deforestation across their range. Fight for them when you shop #Boycottpalmoil 🚫#BoycottGold 🪙 #Boycott4Wildlife🌳 https://wp.me/pcFhgU-8tM

DYK Orange-breasted 🦅 Falcon’s striking orange 🧡 and black 🖤 plumage helps their courtship displays? 💕Sadly, these beautiful #birds are under threat from #palmoil #soy and #gold #deforestation. Help them and #BoycottPalmOil #Boycott4Wildlife 🌍✨ https://wp.me/pcFhgU-8tM

Appearance & Behaviour

These falcons are known for their incredible hunting prowess. They are agile fliers, capable of high-speed pursuits and sudden, sharp turns to catch their prey. Their striking orange and black plumage not only serves as a visual treat but also plays a role in their courtship displays.

The Orange-breasted Falcon is a medium-sized bird of prey, measuring about 35-40 cm (14-16 inches) in length. Males weigh between 325-425 grams (11-15 ounces), while females are larger, weighing between 550-700 grams (19-25 ounces). Their distinctive plumage features a rich and vibrant coloured orange breast that contrasts to their black wings and back. Both sexes have similar plumage, but females are larger. These falcons are known for their robust and stocky build and large heads and talons, which make them powerful hunters stalking the skies.

Threats

• Deforestation for palm oil, soy, gold mining and cattle ranching
• Human persecution and hunting
• Pesticide use in agriculture, which affects their prey base
• Competition for nest sites with Black Vultures
• Impact of Africanised bees on nesting sites

Empower yourself to make a difference. Together, we can fight for the survival of the Orange-breasted Falcon by making mindful choices. #BoycottPalmOil and support wildlife-friendly products. Share this page and join the movement to protect our precious wildlife. #BoycottPalmOil #Boycott4Wildlife

Habitat

The Orange-breasted Falcon is found in tropical forests and savannas across Central and South America, from southern Mexico to northern Argentina. They prefer habitats with tall trees and open spaces that allow for their high-speed hunting. They are most commonly found in Belize, Guatemala, and Panama, though their range has significantly reduced over time.

Diet

These falcons are carnivorous, primarily feeding on other birds and small mammals. They are skilled hunters, often capturing prey mid-flight with their sharp talons. Their diet includes a wide variety of birds and occasionally bats.

Mating and breeding

Orange-breasted Falcons typically nest in tall trees or on cliff ledges. They lay 2-3 eggs, which are incubated by the female for about 30-34 days. Both parents are involved in feeding and caring for the chicks until they are ready to fledge, approximately 40-45 days after hatching.

Support Orange-breasted Falcon by going vegan and boycotting palm oil, gold and meat when you shop, it’s the #Boycott4Wildlife

Support the conservation of this species

This animal has no protections in place. Read about other forgotten species here. Create art to support this forgotten animal or raise awareness about them by sharing this post and using the #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife hashtags on social media. Also you can boycott palm oil in the supermarket.

Further Information

BirdLife International. 2016. Falco deiroleucus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016: e.T22696516A93569126. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22696516A93569126.en. Accessed on 05 June 2024.

Orange-breasted Falcon. (2024). In Wikipedia. Retrieved June 5, 2024, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orange-breasted_falcon

How can I help the #Boycott4Wildlife?

Take Action in Five Ways

1. Join the #Boycott4Wildlife on social media and subscribe to stay in the loop: Share posts from this website to your own network on Twitter, Mastadon, Instagram, Facebook and Youtube using the hashtags #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife.

• Twitter
• Facebook
• Instagram
• WordPress
• YouTube
• Mail
• Mastodon

Enter your email address

Sign Up

2. Contribute stories: Academics, conservationists, scientists, indigenous rights advocates and animal rights advocates working to expose the corruption of the palm oil industry or to save animals can contribute stories to the website.

Wildlife Artist Juanchi Pérez

Mel Lumby: Dedicated Devotee to Borneo’s Living Beings

Anthropologist and Author Dr Sophie Chao

Health Physician Dr Evan Allen

The World’s Most Loved Cup: A Social, Ethical & Environmental History of Coffee by Aviary Doert

How do we stop the world’s ecosystems from going into a death spiral? A #SteadyState Economy

3. Supermarket sleuthing: Next time you’re in the supermarket, take photos of products containing palm oil. Share these to social media along with the hashtags to call out the greenwashing and ecocide of the brands who use palm oil. You can also take photos of palm oil free products and congratulate brands when they go palm oil free.

https://twitter.com/CuriousApe4/status/1526136783557529600?s=20

https://twitter.com/PhillDixon1/status/1749010345555788144?s=20

https://twitter.com/mugabe139/status/1678027567977078784?s=20

4. Take to the streets: Get in touch with Palm Oil Detectives to find out more.

5. Donate: Make a one-off or monthly donation to Palm Oil Detectives as a way of saying thank you and to help pay for ongoing running costs of the website and social media campaigns. Donate here

Learn about other animals endangered by palm oil and other agriculture

Santa Catarina’s Guinea Pig Cavia intermedia

Keel-billed Toucan Ramphastos sulfuratus

Asian Small-clawed Otter Aonyx cinereus

Marsupials thought extinct for 6,000 years found in West Papua

Gursky’s Spectral Tarsier Tarsius spectrumgurskyae

Sunda Flying Lemur Galeopterus variegatus

Learn about “sustainable” palm oil greenwashing

Read more about RSPO greenwashing

A 2019 World Health Organisation (WHO) report into the palm oil industry and RSPO finds extensive greenwashing of palm oil deforestation and the murder of endangered animals (i.e. biodiversity loss)

#Guatamala #News #ClimateChange

https://www.socialnews.xyz/?p=5837475

Reading about more terror in Palestine I'm thinking this is what we did in #vietnam this is what we did in #guatamala and #Iraq and #Afghanistan. In the last three, the administration was able to hide most of the slaughter, but it was the same. Now the vail is off, like it was in Vietnam and it is shocking us. But will it be enough to realize that this is what America is all about, from the slaughter of the #Penobscots to #Gazans ? Should I hope that we come to the realization that we need a fundamental change to the culture itself, not the right president.
https://www.newscentermaine.com/article/news/education/generations-later-mainers-confront-a-genocide-that-still-remains-overlooked-wabanaki-culture-history/97-17c9448b-4f39-4c7c-87f0-e234e5d445be#:~:text=In%20November%201755%2C%20Lt.,of%20many%20other%20tribal%20members.

Nach über zwei Jahrzehnten ist der #Bürgerkrieg in #Guatamala noch immer nicht juristisch aufgearbeitet. Mit dem neuen Präsidenten Bernardo #Arévalo gibt es Hoffnung auf Versöhnung. https://www.nd-aktuell.de/artikel/1180289.guatemala-guatemala-das-trauma-des-buergerkriegs.html

Mabe Fratti - Pies Sobre La Tierra
#vinyl @vinylrecords #noiseros #chamberMusic #WomenInMusic #Mexico #Guatamala #NowPlaying

Long wait for this one to get delivered- such a talent. Highly recommended. You can hear it on #bandcamp

https://mabefratti1.bandcamp.com/album/pies-sobre-la-tierra

Research: Certifying Palm Oil as “Sustainable” Is No Panacea

Newly published research led by the University of Michigan reveals that despite the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) certification system being influential, its effectiveness in reducing deforestation has so far for decades, been an illusion. The study used remote sensing to analyse deforestation caused by oil palm plantations in Guatemala, a major palm oil supplier to global markets.

The results of the paper show that these plantations were responsible for 28% of the region’s deforestation, and RSPO-certified plantations did not significantly reduce deforestation. The study links this deforestation to the supply chains of major brands: Pepsico, Mondelēz International, and Grupo Bimbo, who rely on RSPO-certified palm oil supplies.

As a consumer you can make a difference every time you shop, use your wallet as a weapon and #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife

@UMich #research finds “sustainable” #RSPO #palmoil sourced in #Guatemala 🇬🇹 NOT sustainable, yet it’s sold this way to consumers, despite links to #humanrights abuses 🧺🩸 #deforestation. Fight back! #Boycottpalmoil 🌴⛔️ #Boycottpalmoil @palmoildetect https://palmoildetectives.com/2023/07/26/palm-oil-deforestation-in-guatemala-certifying-products-as-sustainable-is-no-panacea-university-of-michigan/

So-called “sustainable” #palmoil certified by #RSPO originating in #Guatemala 🇬🇹 is strongly connected to #deforestation and #ecocide finds @UMich study. Help #rainforests and fight #extinction #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife 🌴🪔🔥☠️🚫 @palmoildetect https://palmoildetectives.com/2023/07/26/palm-oil-deforestation-in-guatemala-certifying-products-as-sustainable-is-no-panacea-university-of-michigan/

This media release entitled “Palm oil plantations and deforestation in Guatemala: Certifying products as ‘sustainable’ is no panacea” was issued by The University of Michigan on July 20, 2023. The study on which it is based is available to read here

https://youtu.be/eG8V-Cmj4Es

Cheap, versatile and easy to grow, palm oil is the world’s most consumed vegetable oil and is found in roughly half of all packaged supermarket products, from bread and margarine to shampoo and toothpaste.

But producing palm oil has caused deforestation and biodiversity loss across Southeast Asia and elsewhere, including Central America. Efforts to curtail the damage have largely focused on voluntary environmental certification programs that label qualifying palm-oil sources as “sustainable.”

However, those certification programs have been criticised by environmental groups as greenwashing tools that enable multinational corporations to claim fully “sustainable” palm oil, while continuing to sell products that fall far short of the deforestation-free goal.

Findings from a new University of Michigan-led study, published online in the Journal of Environmental Management, support some of the critics’ claims—and go much further.

“Environmental certification does not effectively mitigate deforestation risk, and firms cannot rely on—or be allowed to rely on—certification to achieve deforestation-free supply chains,”

Study senior author Joshua Newell, a geographer and a professor at the School for Environment and Sustainability.

Key findings

• RSPO-certified plantations, comprising 63% of the total cultivated area assessed, did not produce a statistically significant reduction in deforestation and appear to be ineffective at reducing encroachment into ecologically sensitive areas in Guatemala.
• Despite their RSPO membership and pledges to source palm oil from certified plantations, several multinational corporations predominantly sourced palm oil from noncertified mills in Guatemala.
• Even RSPO-certified palm oil plantations and mills are contributing to deforestation in Guatemala.

The U-M case study focuses on Guatemala, which is projected to become the world’s third-largest palm-oil producer by 2030 after Indonesia and Malaysia, and an influential environmental certification system called the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil, or RSPO.

“Our results indicate the supply chains of transnational conglomerates drove deforestation and ecological encroachment in Guatemala to support U.S. palm oil consumption,” said study lead author Calli VanderWilde, a doctoral student at the U-M School for Environment and Sustainability who did the work for her dissertation.

“In addition, we found no evidence to suggest that RSPO certification effectively protects against deforestation or ecological encroachment. Given that oil palm expansion is predicted to increase significantly in the coming years, this pattern is likely to continue without changes to governance, both institutionally and to supply chains.”

The U-M-led research team tracked palm oil sourced from former forestland, and other ecologically critical areas in Guatemala, by several large transnational conglomerates that sell food products made from the oil in the United States. The corporations are members of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil and have RSPO commitments and sourcing policies in place to ensure the sustainability of their palm oil supplies.

The study used satellite imagery and machine learning to quantify deforestation attributable to palm oil plantation expansion in Guatemala over a decade, 2009-2019. In addition, the researchers used shipment records and other data sources to reconstruct corporate supply chains and to link transnational conglomerates to palm oil-driven deforestation.

The study found that:

• Guatemalan palm oil plantations expanded an estimated 215,785 acres during the study period, with 28% of the new cropland replacing forests.
• As of 2019, more than 60% of the palm oil plantations in the study area were in Key Biodiversity Areas. KBAs are sites that contribute significantly to the global persistence of biodiversity in terrestrial, freshwater and marine ecosystems.
• RSPO-certified plantations, comprising 63% of the total cultivated area assessed, did not produce a statistically significant reduction in deforestation and appear to be ineffective at reducing encroachment into ecologically sensitive areas in Guatemala.
• Despite their RSPO membership and pledges to source palm oil from certified plantations, several multinational corporations predominantly sourced palm oil from noncertified mills in Guatemala.
• Even RSPO-certified palm oil plantations and mills are contributing to deforestation in Guatemala.

Guatemala is divided into 22 administrative districts called departamentos. The study focused on a 20,850-square-mile region in the three departamentos (Alta Verapaz, Izabal and the lower half of Petén) responsible for 75% of Guatemala’s palm oil production.

The researchers used high-resolution satellite imagery to assess land-use change between 2009 and 2019, and a machine learning algorithm enabled them to distinguish between forests and monoculture plantations.

They found that oil palm expansion is encroaching on, and causing deforestation in, seven Key Biodiversity Areas and 23 protected areas.

Among the areas impacted, the Key Biodiversity Areas with the largest palm extent include the Río La Pasión, Caribe de Guatemala and Sierra de las Minas Biosphere Reserve. The Río La Pasión is an especially rich area for endemic fish species, making it an important area for conservation.

Oil palm encroachment on the Sierra de las Minas Biosphere Reserve threatens animals such as the quetzal, Guatemala’s national bird. Known as the jewel of Guatemala, the reserve is an irreplaceable gene bank for tropical reforestation and agroforestry and supports the livelihoods of more than 400,000 people.

The researchers identified 119 RSPO-certified plantations and 82 non-RSPO plantations. During the study period, 9% of the RSPO-certified plantation expansion resulted in, or contributed to, forest loss, compared to 25% of the noncertified plantation expansion.

“Environmental certification does not effectively mitigate deforestation risk, and firms cannot rely on—or be allowed to rely on—certification to achieve deforestation-free supply chains,”

Study senior author Joshua Newell, a geographer and a professor at the School for Environment and Sustainability.

By reconstructing the supply chains of the three conglomerates, the researchers revealed connections to palm oil-driven deforestation. Of the 60,810 acres of palm oil-driven deforestation across the study period, more than 99% was traced to plantations supplying palm and palm-kernel oil to mills used by two multinational conglomerates. Seventy-two percent of the palm and palm-kernel oil was linked to the subset of plantations supplying a third corporation’s mills.

• Greenwashing ecocide – Agropalma & Orangutan Land Trust
• 8. Certification provides opportunities for greenwashing and increases vested interests in and corporate power over natural resources.
• 100 NGOS sign a public statement denouncing the RSPO and “sustainable” palm oil as a fake solution that does not stop deforestation
• Spoiled Fruit: landgrabbing, violence and slavery for “sustainable” palm oil
• 10 Tactics of Sustainable Palm Oil Greenwashing – Summary

“Palm oil has attracted attention for its ties to widespread forest and biodiversity loss across Southeast Asia. However, the literature has paid minimal attention to newer spaces of production and issues of corporate supply-chain traceability,” VanderWilde said.

“As it stands, environmental certification makes unjustified claims of ‘sustainability’ and fails to serve as a reliable tool for fulfilling emerging zero-deforestation requirements.”

The authors recommend reforms to RSPO policies and practices, robust corporate tracking of supply chains, and the strengthening of forest governance in Guatemala.

In addition to VanderWilde and Newell, authors of the study are Dimitrios Gounaridis of the U-M School for Environment and Sustainability and Benjamin Goldstein of McGill University. Funding for the study was provided by U-M’s Rackham Predoctoral Fellowship Program.

Calli P. VanderWilde, Joshua P. Newell, Dimitrios Gounaridis, Benjamin P. Goldstein,
Deforestation, certification, and transnational palm oil supply chains: Linking Guatemala to global consumer markets, Journal of Environmental Management,
Volume 344, 2023. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2023.118505

Deforestation, certification, and transnational palm oil supply chains: Linking Guatemala to global consumer markets

Abstract

Although causal links between tropical deforestation and palm oil are well established, linking this land use change to where the palm oil is actually consumed remains a distinct challenge and research gap. Supply chains are notoriously difficult to track back to their origin (i.e., the ‘first-mile’). This poses a conundrum for corporations and governments alike as they commit to deforestation-free sourcing and turn to instruments like certification to increase supply chain transparency and sustainability. The Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) offers the most influential certification system in the sector, but whether it actually reduces deforestation is still unclear. This study used remote sensing and spatial analysis to assess the deforestation (2009–2019) caused by oil palm plantation expansion in Guatemala, a major palm oil source for international consumer markets. Our results reveal that plantations are responsible for 28% of deforestation in the region and that more than 60% of these plantations encroach on Key Biodiversity Areas. RSPO-certified plantations, comprising 63% of the total cultivated area assessed, did not produce a statistically significant reduction in deforestation. Using trade statistics, the study linked this deforestation to the palm oil supply chains of three transnational conglomerates – Pepsico, Mondelēz International, and Grupo Bimbo – all of whom rely on RSPO-certified supplies. Addressing this deforestation and supply chain sustainability challenge hinges on three measures: 1) reform of RSPO policies and practices; 2) robust corporate tracking of supply chains; and 3) strengthening forest governance in Guatemala. This study offers a replicable methodology for a wide-range of investigations that seek to understand the transnational linkages between environmental change (e.g. deforestation) and consumption.

This media release entitled “Palm oil plantations and deforestation in Guatemala: Certifying products as ‘sustainable’ is no panacea” was issued by The University of Michigan on July 20, 2023. The study on which it is based is available to read here

ENDS

Read more about deforestation and greenwashing associated with “sustainable” palm oil

Family Ties Expose Deforestation and Rights Violations in Indonesian Palm Oil

An explosive report by the Environment Investigation Agency (EIA) details how Indonesia’s Fangiono family, through a wide corporate web, is linked to ongoing #deforestation, #corruption, and #indigenousrights abuses for #palmoil. Calls mount for…

Read more

Corporate Control of Food Harms Us All

Around 800 million people in our world go hungry each day. Yet around the globe we have enough food to go around. So why the discrepancy? Market concentration and corporate monopoly of our…

Read more

MSC and RSPO Absolutely Untrustworthy, Greenpeace Report

Greenpeace report reveals severe failures of ecolabel RSPO certifying palm oil and FSC certifying seafood. Consumers are being greenwashed. Boycott palm oil!

Read more

Guaranteeing Ecocide: The Green Lie of Palm Oil Certification

For decades, the palm oil industry, backed by the RSPO, has misled consumers with the false promise of “sustainable” palm oil. Behind this green façade lies a brutal reality of deforestation, human rights…

Read more

How Brands Exploit “Green” Certification

Brands and businesses may be tempted to exploit “green” certifications to garner a larger market share at the expense of integrity.

Read more

August 19th is #WorldOrangutanDay

Although #WorldOrangutanDay falls on the 19th of August, every day deserves to be World Orangutan Day! So here is an infographic that you can download, print and share however you please. All three…

Read more

Palm Oil Greenwashing Poised to Destroy Protected Biosphere in Chiapas, Mexico

Situated on Mexico’s lush and biodiverse Pacific coast is La Encrucijada Biosphere Reserve – One of Mexico’s most spectacular natural treasures. Now the government and palm oil businesses are trying to sieze vast…

Read more

PalmWatch: A Tool to Hold Palm Oil Greenwashers to Account

A groundbreaking open-source tool by the University of Chicago called PalmWatch, shines a light on the darkest parts of the palm oil industry.

PalmWatch is a free web-based tool that reveals links between…

Read more

Air Pollution from Palm Oil: A Human Rights Issue

Forest-fire haze from Indonesian palm oil deforestation is a crisis! Learn how toxic air pollution is a human rights issue affecting all of Southeast Asia

Read more

UK Pressuring Forests For Palm Oil and Beef

Urgent call to action! 🌍 #UK’s heavy use of #palmoil #soy & #beef fuels global #deforestation. Demand stricter regulations & transparency. Make every purchase count and #Boycottmeat #BoycottPalmOil #Boycott4Wildlife, learn more: https://wp.me/pcFhgU-78V

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Take Action in Five Ways

1. Join the #Boycott4Wildlife on social media and subscribe to stay in the loop: Share posts from this website to your own network on Twitter, Mastadon, Instagram, Facebook and Youtube using the hashtags #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife.

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• Facebook
• Instagram
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• YouTube
• Mail
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Enter your email address

Sign Up

2. Contribute stories: Academics, conservationists, scientists, indigenous rights advocates and animal rights advocates working to expose the corruption of the palm oil industry or to save animals can contribute stories to the website.

Wildlife Artist Juanchi Pérez

Read more

Mel Lumby: Dedicated Devotee to Borneo’s Living Beings

Read more

Anthropologist and Author Dr Sophie Chao

Read more

Health Physician Dr Evan Allen

Read more

The World’s Most Loved Cup: A Social, Ethical & Environmental History of Coffee by Aviary Doert

Read more

How do we stop the world’s ecosystems from going into a death spiral? A #SteadyState Economy

Read more

3. Supermarket sleuthing: Next time you’re in the supermarket, take photos of products containing palm oil. Share these to social media along with the hashtags to call out the greenwashing and ecocide of the brands who use palm oil. You can also take photos of palm oil free products and congratulate brands when they go palm oil free.

https://twitter.com/CuriousApe4/status/1526136783557529600?s=20

https://twitter.com/PhillDixon1/status/1749010345555788144?s=20

https://twitter.com/mugabe139/status/1678027567977078784?s=20

4. Take to the streets: Get in touch with Palm Oil Detectives to find out more.

5. Donate: Make a one-off or monthly donation to Palm Oil Detectives as a way of saying thank you and to help pay for ongoing running costs of the website and social media campaigns. Donate here

#BoycottPalmOil #Boycott4wildlife #BoycottPalmOil #deforestation #ecocide #Environmental #EnvironmentalJustice #extinction #greenwashing #Guatamala #Guatemala #HumanRights #PalmOil #palmOilDeforestation #palmoil #rainforests #research #RSPO #RSPOGreenwashing

‘A toxic policy with little returns’ – lessons for the UK-Rwanda deal from Australia and the US

https://theconversation.com/a-toxic-policy-with-little-returns-lessons-for-the-uk-rwanda-deal-from-australia-and-the-us-201790

#Refugees #Asylum #Rwanda #Nauru #Guatamala

Will palm oil watchdog RSPO rid itself of deforestation or continue to pretend its products are sustainable? – EIA

Palm oil produced through the destruction of forestland is still being sold around the world with the blessing of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO).

Media release: Environmental Investigation Agency, published 30th November, 2022.

‘#Palmoil being produced through #deforestation is still being sold globally with the blessing of the @RSPOtweets as being “sustainable”. ~ @EIA_news. Fight back with your wallet and #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife

Tweet

@RSPOtweets lets #palmoil co’s that clear #rainforest to be certified “sustainable”. Their #ecocide cannot replace rare animals, plants and #indigenous peoples now gone. – @EIA_news. #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife

Tweet

Media release via Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA). Published November 30, 2022. Read the original.

The watchdog’s routine practices mean that palm oil bearing its stamp of approval to assure consumers it is sustainably produced cannot be considered deforestation-free, as a new EU law will require.

On November 30, 2022 EIA and along with 99 other organisations issued a joint statement calling time on the RSPO and its habitual greenwashing – the act of giving the public or investors misleading or false information about the environmental impacts of a company’s products and activities.

https://youtu.be/bBUrrBoWoKo

The RSPO – the world’s leading voluntary certification scheme for supposedly sustainable palm oil – is holding its annual meeting in Kuala Lumpur this week and it is anticipated there will a significant focus on the upcoming EU deforestation regulation.

The EU is in the process of bringing in a new law that will mean palm oil and other commodities placed on the EU market must be deforestation-free and legal.

Europe is the biggest market for RSPO-certified palm oil, with 93 per cent of imports bearing the organisation’s stamp of approval, so what happens in the EU is of significance to the RSPO and its future.

The RSPO is currently revising its standards, called its Principles and Criteria (P&C), a process it undertakes every five years. In its last P&C revision in 2018, the RSPO adopted a new ‘no deforestation’ standard.

However, this standard falls far short of ensuring supply chains do not result in forest clearance, as the new EU regulation will require.

Key problems with the RSPO’s current ‘no deforestation’ standard

The certified destruction of forests

The RSPO currently allows companies which clear forests to become certified. Companies that do so must simply “compensate” for the loss – either by conserving an equivalent or larger area elsewhere or paying to do so.

This so-called compensation cannot replace the forests that were lost; the animals and plants that lived in that forest are gone, as are the people who might have depended on that forest for their homes and livelihoods.

There was much controversy recently when the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) – the main voluntary certification scheme for timber – changed its cut-off date rules to allow logging companies that have cleared forests after 1994, but not before 2020, to be certified, when they were not allowed to before.

Yet it seems to have gone unnoticed that the RSPO has always allowed this, including for forests cleared beyond 2020. While the RSPO does not allow deforestation after November 2018 on paper, if a company “mistakenly” clears forests or joins the RSPO at a later date, it can simply “compensate” for any forest lost instead.

One of the worst examples of this is PT Bio Inti Agrindo, a palm oil company in Papua, Indonesia, which was RSPO-certified in September 2021. Prior to joining the RSPO, it had been strongly criticised for years for clearing more than 20,000 hectares of pristine rainforest.

Shockingly, the compensation decided on by the RSPO is mainly for the company to support existing neighbouring protected forests, which hardly compensates for the rampant deforestation the company caused.

Image: Forests are still being bulldozed to make way for agricultural land for palm oil and beef production. Richard Whitcombe/Shutterstock

The new EU deforestation will require companies supplying the EU market to have not cleared forests after a specific cut-off date – proposed to be 31 December 2020 by the European Commission.

Given the RSPO currently allows companies which have cleared forests to continue to be certified, meeting RSPO requirements will not guarantee meeting the upcoming EU rules.

The price of unsustainable palm oil – deforestation and the end of tradition livelihoods

Mixing of uncertified palm oil from deforestation

Another big problem with the RSPO is that it allows uncertified palm oil that comes from deforestation to be mixed with certified palm oil.

This is known as the Mass Balance model and the practice means that RSPO supply chains are tainted and allows companies sourcing from concessions that are responsible for deforestation to promote themselves as “sustainable” or RSPO-certified. This includes RSPO-certified mills being allowed to source uncertified palm oil produced from deforestation.

Last year, companies which are the members of the RSPO adopted a resolution calling for the organisation to strengthen and revise the Mass Balance system in recognition of the problems it is causing the RSPO’s credibility.

Given that the new EU deforestation regulation will require all sources of palm oil in the supply chain to be deforestation-free, RSPO certification cannot guarantee this either, given its wide use of the Mass Balance model.

“It remains to be seen whether the RSPO will act for a change and address the deforestation and other problems in its system or continue to paper over the cracks and pretend its palm oil is sustainable.”

~ EIA Forests Campaigner Siobhan Pearce

Will the RSPO act or is its time up?

However, given the US ban and significant press coverage of human rights abuse on Sime Darby palm plantations, these imports demonstrate a willful disregard for the protection of human life.

The new EU deforestation regulation and the revision of the P&C is a critical time for the RSPO. It has, and continues to face, a multitude of problems that to date it has been slow to act on.

These range from poor assurance that its standards are actually adhered to, as we have exposed, and failing to uphold complaints to its members being mired in accusations of forced labour.

Given the RSPO’s track record of inadequately dealing with serious issues in its system, there is significant doubt it will do so now.

EIA Forests Campaigner Siobhan Pearce said: “It remains to be seen whether the RSPO will act for a change and address the deforestation and other problems in its system or continue to paper over the cracks and pretend its palm oil is sustainable.”

Media release via Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA). Published November 30, 2022. Read the original.

ENDS

Read more about RSPO greenwashing

Big brands using “sustainable” RSPO palm oil yet still causing deforestation (there are many others)

Nestlé

Nestlé is destroying rainforests, releasing mega-tonnes of carbon into the atmosphere, and killing hundreds of endangered species. Once these animals are gone – they are gone for good. See Nestlé’s full list of…

Colgate-Palmolive

Despite global retail giant Colgate-Palmolive forming a coalition with other brands in 2020, virtue-signalling that they will stop all deforestation, they continue to do this – destroying rainforest and releasing mega-tonnes of carbon…

Mondelēz

Mondelez destroys rainforests, sending animals extinct and release mega-tonnes of carbon into air for so-called “sustainable” palm oil. Boycott them!

Unilever

In 2020, global retail giant Unilever unveiled a deforestation-free supply chain promise. By 2023 they would be deforestation free. This has been and gone and they are still causing deforestation. This brand has…

Danone

Savvy consumers have been pressuring French Dairy multinational Danone for decades to cease using deforestation palm oil. Yet they actually haven’t stopped this. From their website: ‘Danone is committed to eliminating deforestation from…

PepsiCo

Despite decades of promises to end deforestation for palm oil PepsiCo (owner of crisp brands Frito-Lay, Cheetos and Doritos along with hundreds of other snack food brands) have continued sourcing palm oil that…

Procter & Gamble

Despite decades of promises to end deforestation for palm oil Procter & Gamble or (P&G as they are also known) have continued sourcing palm oil that causes ecocide, indigenous landgrabbing, and the habitat…

Kelloggs/Kellanova

In late 2023, Kelloggs became Kellanova for their US arm. Savvy consumers have been pressuring Kelloggs for decades to cease using deforestation palm oil. Yet they actually haven’t stopped this. From their website:…

Johnson & Johnson

Global mega-brand Johnson & Johnson have issued a position statement on palm oil in 2020. ‘At Johnson & Johnson, we are committed to doing our part to address the unsustainable rate of global…

PZ Cussons

PZ Cussons is a British-owned global retail giant. They own well-known supermarket brands in personal care, cleaning, household goods and toiletries categories, such as Imperial Leather, Morning Fresh, Carex, Radiant laundry powder and…

Here are some other ways you can help by using your wallet as a weapon and joining the #Boycott4Wildlife

What is greenwashing?

Why join the #Boycott4Wildlife?

Greenwashing Tactic #4: Fake Labels

The Counterpunch: Consumer Solutions To Fight Extinction

Contribute to my Ko-Fi

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Palm Oil Detectives is completely self-funded by its creator. All hosting and website fees and investigations into brands are self-funded by the creator of this online movement. If you like what I am doing, you and would like me to help meet costs, please send Palm Oil Detectives a thanks on Ko-Fi.

Tikal in Guatemala #Tikal #Archeology #Guatamala

The 'progressive' cop #KamalaHarris dares to lecture #Guatamala about it's poverty and problems with violence, when discussing immigration from the country to the #USA.

https://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2021/04/26/Vice-President-Kamala-Harris-Guatemala-President-Alejandro-Giammattei-address-root-causes-migration/4191619486951/

This move is preposterous giving the fact that US and Canadian governments have a long track record of using the country as a cash cow for their own capitalist oligarchs to exploit.

https://historyincharts.com/the-influence-of-the-united-fruit-company-in-guatemala/

https://countercurrents.org/2020/09/mining-and-imperialism-in-guatemala/

The administration of #JoeBiden will also help to enforce 'border security' in the Guatamalan region, which we all know means that the heartless and cruel border policies of the US-Mexican border will find it's way down south.

https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/us-guatemala-train-border-protection-force-77331426

Reject and resist this sanctimonious #liberalism! If you really want to help South America, fight against borders and destroy the roots of US imperialism!

#capitalism #imperialism #noborders #FuckBiden #SouthAmerica

Yucatán Black Howler Monkey Alouatta pigra

Yucatán Black Howler Monkey Alouatta pigra

Endangered

Belize; Guatemala; Mexico (Quintana Roo, Campeche, Chiapas, Tabasco, Yucatán)

Yucatán Black Howler Monkeys are best known for their overpowering howl which can be heard up to 3 miles away. Morning and evening howling sessions can go on for over an hour. They are the largest #monkey in Latin America and keep a watchful presence in densely forested primary and secondary forest, mangroves and other human disturbed landscapes.

Their range is being rapidly destroyed for palm oil and sugar cane deforestation and mining. They are also facing human persecution and hunting pressures. Yucatán Black Howler Monkeys have been classified as endangered since 2004. Help them every time you shop and #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife

Yucatán Black Howler #Monkeys 🐵🐒🩷 are endangered from #palmoil #deforestation in #Guatamala 🇬🇹#Mexico 🇲🇽 Their loud communal howling can be heard 5km away 🎶 Help them to survive when you #Boycottpalmoil 🌴🚫 #Boycott4Wildlife @palmoildetect https://palmoildetectives.com/2021/03/22/yucatan-black-howler-monkey-alouatta-pigra/

The Yucatán Black Howler #Monkey is endangered by #palmoil #deforestation and mining in #Guatamala, #Mexico. Their loud communal howling can be heard for up to 5km away. Don’t let the forests go silent! #Boycottpalmoil #Boycott4Wildlife https://palmoildetectives.com/2021/03/22/yucatan-black-howler-monkey-alouatta-pigra/ via @palmoildetect

Yucatán Black Howler Monkeys prefer to live in a variety of forests and spend their days high up in the boughs of trees in evergreen and semi-evergreen forests, deciduous and semi-deciduous broad-leaved forests, mangroves, swamps eucalyptus plantations and agricultural plantations.

https://youtu.be/m5VDG5lAEtM

The main threats for black howler monkeys are accelerated deforestation rate across its distribution and the direct extraction of individuals for pet trade. In Guatemala a high rate of deforestation has been associated with the rapid expansion of the agriculture frontier due to megaprojects such as African palm oil and sugar cane, and the destruction of forest due to open mining (Foucart 2011).

IUCN red list

Behaviour

The howling of these monkeys is loud enough to be heard three miles away. A study in 2014 revealed just why Alouatta pigra and other howlers call out so loudly.

Our findings suggest that loud calls in black howler monkeys are multifunctional, but most frequently occur in the defense of major feeding sites. These calls also may function in the defense of infants and mates during encounters with extragroup males.

Van Belle, S., Estrada, A., & Garber, P. A. (2014). The function of loud calls in black howler monkeys (Alouatta pigra): Food, mate, or infant defense? American Journal of Primatology, 76(12), 1196–1206. https://doi.org/10.1002/ajp.22304

Support the conservation of this species

Wild Tracks

Further Information

Cortes-Ortíz, L., Rosales-Meda, M., Marsh, L.K. & Mittermeier, R.A. 2020. Alouatta pigra. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2020: e.T914A17926000. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-3.RLTS.T914A17926000.en. Downloaded on 05 March 2021.

Van Belle, S., Estrada, A., & Garber, P. A. (2014). The function of loud calls in black howler monkeys (Alouatta pigra): Food, mate, or infant defense? American Journal of Primatology, 76(12), 1196–1206. https://doi.org/10.1002/ajp.22304

How can I help the #Boycott4Wildlife?

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2. Contribute stories: Academics, conservationists, scientists, indigenous rights advocates and animal rights advocates working to expose the corruption of the palm oil industry or to save animals can contribute stories to the website.

Wildlife Artist Juanchi Pérez

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Mel Lumby: Dedicated Devotee to Borneo’s Living Beings

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Anthropologist and Author Dr Sophie Chao

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Health Physician Dr Evan Allen

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The World’s Most Loved Cup: A Social, Ethical & Environmental History of Coffee by Aviary Doert

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How do we stop the world’s ecosystems from going into a death spiral? A #SteadyState Economy

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3. Supermarket sleuthing: Next time you’re in the supermarket, take photos of products containing palm oil. Share these to social media along with the hashtags to call out the greenwashing and ecocide of the brands who use palm oil. You can also take photos of palm oil free products and congratulate brands when they go palm oil free.

https://twitter.com/CuriousApe4/status/1526136783557529600?s=20

https://twitter.com/PhillDixon1/status/1749010345555788144?s=20

https://twitter.com/mugabe139/status/1678027567977078784?s=20

4. Take to the streets: Get in touch with Palm Oil Detectives to find out more.

5. Donate: Make a one-off or monthly donation to Palm Oil Detectives as a way of saying thank you and to help pay for ongoing running costs of the website and social media campaigns. Donate here

#Belize #Boycott4wildlife #BoycottPalmOil #deforestation #EndangeredSpecies #ForgottenAnimals #Guatamala #Mammal #Mexico #monkey #monkeys #palmoil #Primate #SouthAmericaSpeciesEndangeredByPalmOilDeforestation #sugar #sugarCane #sugarcane #YucatánBlackHowlerMonkeyAlouattaPigra