Grecia the Toucan from Costa Rica, made headlines when it was attacked and beaten with a stick by local teenagers who left the bird for dead with half its beak missing.
The toucan was rescued and brought to a Costa Rica animal rescue center, Rescate Animal ZooAve in 2014. It was unable to eat or fend for itself, as toucans rely on their beaks for essential functions such as preening, regulating body temperature, self-defense, and mating, the Washington Times reports.
Caretake Ronald Sibaja said , “She was really bad off,” referring to the toucan’s condition when they brought it in.
All that was left of the top beak was a jagged bloody stump.
Without their beaks, toucans are helpless in the wild and are unlikely to survive. Many are euthanized instead of getting returned to the forest without a beak. Upon initial examination by a vet, the animal center workers thought that Grecia would have to face the same fate.
Grecia, named after its forest home, got a happier ending. Dedicated workers, doctors and engineers working with the animal center and Rock Hill company 3D Systems built the bird a prosthetic beak to replace the part it lost.
The beak was made of nylon, constructed in two parts. The top portion was glued to the toucan’s stump, and the longer part is attached by a pin. The beak can be removed for regular cleaning, NPR reports.
The new beak enabled Grecia to finally eat properly. Both bird and beak went on public display at ZooAve, located just 30 minutes from Costa Rica’s capital.
What happened to Grecia sparked outrage over the lack of animal abuse laws in Costa Rica. The bird’s abuse and the subsequent story of rehabilitation motivated Costa Ricans to press for a bill to protect animals and punish abusers. Rallies in support of an anti-abuse bill and signatures to get the bill passed into law have been on the move.
“What happened to Grecia was terrible,” Sibaja said. “But it brought awareness of animal abuse in our country.”
Grecia’s journey has been documented on an Animal Planet special feature entitled “Toucan Nation” by filmmaker Paula Heredia.
