INTRODUCTION. 
The earliest record respecting the existence of a species of the remarkable group of birds now so well 
known by their common appellation of Toucans, occurs in the 28th Chapter of Belon’s third book published 
in 1555, where a figure of the bill of Ramphastos Toco is given as belonging to a bird of the new world. 
The beak of another species also formed part of the celebrated collection of John Tradescant, and was 
described in the “ Museum Tradescantium,” published in 1656, as that of the Arafari of Brazil. The first 
figure of an entire bird appeared in the “ Ornithologia ” of Willughby under the name of Pica Braziliensis 
Toucan , but is so imperfect that we can scarcely say what species it is meant to represent; most likely, 
however, it is intended for the Ramphastos Toco : subsequently a correct but very rude figure of another 
species, probably the Ramphastos erythrorhynchus, was published in Petiver’s “ Gazophylacii Naturae ”; and 
to these meagre materials but little appears to have been added until the appearance of the “ Systema 
Naturae ” of the celebrated Linnaeus, in the twelfth edition of which lie enumerates eight species ; but of 
these R. picatus cannot be identified, and the R. Momotus has nothing whatever to do with the present 
family, but is a true Motmot—genus Momotus : six species then were all that were known to Linnaeus. 
Gmelin, in his edition of the “ Systema Naturae,” enumerates eight others, but of these R. pavonmus, 
torquatus, luteus, cceruleus, and albas cannot be identified, and R. erythrorhynchus is probably identical with 
the R. Tucanus of Linnaeus ; his i?. Toco, according to the characters detailed, is therefore the only addition 
made by him to the previous list. Illiger appears to have added R. mtellinus ; at least Mr. Swainson quotes 
that name as having been given by him, but does not say where, nor have I been able to discover his 
description of the species. Dr. Shaw proposed the name of R. Aldrovandi for the R. picatus of Linnaeus, 
which I have already mentioned cannot be identified. Vieillot merely Latinized the French names given by 
