The Groove-billed Toucanet is a small, green, canopy-dwelling bird found in the mountains of northern Venezuela and northeastern Colombia. It is identified by its white-throated, greenish-yellow plumage, blackish beak with distinct lateral grooves, and bluish tail tip. Its grooved culmen and mandible give it its English name, and it can be distinguished from the Emerald Toucanet and Crimson-rumped Toucanet mainly by green undertail coverts and rump and bluish tail tip. Found in humid forests, it is usually in pairs or small groups, moving or feeding in the canopy. Interestingly, Groove-bills have been observed opportunistically following army ant swarms in the highland forests of Venezuela, in order to forage on insects and small vertebrates flushed by the ants.

Scientific Name: Aulachorynchus sulcatus sulcatus
Range: Colombia, and Venezuela
IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern
CITES Listing: Not listed

Plumage: Primarily green, with a pale bluish-gray throat, bluish-green ocular area, and green rump
Eyes: Dark brown to blackish eyes, surrounded by dark skin
Bill: Distinctive large, tubular, and decurved bill featuring lateral grooves along the culmen and mandible (particularly in older birds), blackish with dark red in color

Length: 13 to 15 inches (33 to 37 centimeters)
Weight: 5 to 7 ounces (130 to 200 grams)

Vocalization: A repetitive, raspy croak or nasal "wik-wik to waak-waak", with male's voices being lower pitched than female's voices

Breeding: Nests in tree cavities, laying 3-4 eggs, with both parents incubating and caring for the young