Toucan

too'kan, a family of birds allied to the parrot. There are a score of species in the forests of tropical South America. The foot is yoke-toed-two toes point forward; two backward. The larger species reach a length of twenty inches and all are brilliantly colored in scarlet, black, bronze, olive, cinnamon, orange, or green. The toucan is a ceaseless screamer. It is noticeable for an enormous saw-toothed, curved bill, which seems entirely too heavy for the body. It reaches a length of six inches in the large species, but it is really quite light and porous in structure. The toucan is an omnivorous eater, living on seeds, fish, small birds, reptiles, and insects, but chiefly on fleshy fruits. See Hornbill

Touch-me-not, known also as balsam, impatiens, and jewel-weed, a favorite garden flower. The touch-me-not is related to the wood-sorrel, but it grows from one to five feet high. The plant is transparent and full of water. The stems are branching and are crowded with leaves and white, red, or variegated flowers. One sepal is prolonged into a spur. The name touch-me-not comes from the impatient nature of the seed pod. If a ripe pod be touched it springs open surprisingly, flinging its seeds to some distance. Our garden flower is a native of southern Europe. There are in all 100 kinds, found chiefly in the East Indies. Two kinds grow wild in America, one with pale yellow flowers, sometimes spotted, and one with orange-colored flowers thickly spotted with brown. Both grow in rich, damp soil in shady ravines.