Grecia (hatched ) was a chestnut-mandibled toucan known as the first

toucan Toucans (, ) are Neotropical birds in the family Ramphastidae. They are most closely related to the Semnornis, Toucan barbets. They are brightly marked and have large, often colorful Beak, bills. The family includes five genus, genera and over ...

to receive a prosthetic 3D-printed beak.

Early life and injuries

Grecia hatched in the wild in or around Grecia, one of the

cantons of Costa Rica Costa Rica is administratively divided into provinces of Costa Rica, seven provinces which are subdivided into 84 canton (administrative division), cantons, and these are further subdivided into districts of Costa Rica, districts. Cantons are t ...

, in approximately March 2014. The toucan was beaten by youths, and its top beak broke off. Government officials transported the bird to the animal rescue center Rescate Wildlife Rescue Center (formerly Rescate Animal Zoo Ave), west of the city of Alajuela. A few

3D printing 3D printing, or additive manufacturing, is the construction of a three-dimensional object from a CAD model or a digital 3D model. It can be done in a variety of processes in which material is deposited, joined or solidified under computer ...

companies joined efforts to create a prosthetic beak which was successfully attached to Grecia. The bird received its name from the town of Grecia where it was picked up by city officials. Grecia passed away in January 2022, per Zoo Ave employees.

References

Individual birds 2014 animal births Animal cruelty incidents 3D printed objects Prosthetics {{Piciformes-stub Animal world record holders

Early life and injuries

See also

References