The Great Blue Turaco (Corythaeola cristata) is the largest member of the turaco family. It can be found throughout central Africa, living within small groups in forested areas with elevations below around 2,700 ft. It is an excellent climbers, but is poor when it comes to flying due to its short rounded wings so it spends most of its time running along or hopping from branch to branch. It inhabits montane rain forests and gallery forests from sea level to around 2700m and feeds mainly on available fruits within this environment as well as leaves, shoots and flowers. Unique to the Turaco family are the presence of two copper pigments, red turacin and green turacoverdin; no other animal species has this. The colours are more intense in more lush habitats.
