Toucan and Aracari Bird Calabash Christmas tree ornament and hand rattle
These unique Christmas tree ornaments and rattles are made from calabash tree pods (gourds) by native artisans from the Ampiyacu River region of the Peruvian Amazon. This rattle features the figure of a toucan - one of the best known birds of the Amazon and Latin American rainforests.
These rattles are based on the patterns of the white-throated toucan, channel-billed toucan, and chestnut-eared aracari - well-known to the native artisans who carved them among the diverse group of toucans that includes about 40 different species.
They are all readily recognized by their long and wide beak used to feed on fruits and other morsels from the forest. Some species have a characteristic whistle that lets people wandering through the forest know that it is perched in a nearby tree-top. The aracari is distinguished by the colorful stripes across its chest.
This rattle has a chambira palm fiber chord allows it to be hung from a Christmas tree. The beads inside also make it a great rattle that fits in the palm of your hand.
Please remember that the artisan carves these rattles one at a time so the exact design of the animal and shape of the calabash pod will vary from the photo shown of this model.
Models: ORWB007 (toucan), ORWB040 (aracari)
Also see woven toucan ornament
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Amazon forest loss is driving species to extinction, aggravating global warming, and robbing people of unique medicines, foods and other benefits. Cutting and burning forests is often more profitable than conserving them, so some native communities in northern Peru have illegally logged and grown coca and other cash-crops to escape poverty.
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