General Information

Scarlet Macaws are very popular, but expensive, noisy and demanding cage birds. They are considered sociable and affectionate, and some can use human speech. This bird is listed as a CITES species which means that it cannot be taken from the wild. The Scarlet Macaws in captivity are sometimes crossbred with other macaws to produce hybrids. 

Physical Description

The Scarlet Macaw is about 81 to 96 cm long, however most of its length lies in the tail, typical of most birds in their family. It weighs 2 to 2.5 lbs. The plumage is mostly scarlet red, but the rump and tail feathers are a light blue. The upper wings are yellow and the upper sides of the flight feathers are dark blue with a metallic gold iridescence. There is bare white skin around the eyes and bill, and the horn is pale on top and black on bottom. Young birds have dark eyes and adults' eyes are light yellow.  

Diet

Scarlet Macaws eat mostly fruits and seeds that are normally large and hard. They may gather at clay licks as a mineral supplement to detoxify the seeds.

Habitat

The Scarlet Macaw is native to humid evergreen forests in the American tropics, eastern Mexico, Amazonian Peru and Brazil. It lives in lowlands up to 500 meters. This bird is currently conservation dependent due to destruction of habitat and capture for pet trade. The bird can still be found on the island of Coiba and is named the national bird of Honduras.

Reproduction

Typically, the bird can be seen flying above the forest canopy by itself or paired with another. In some areas, the birds travel in flocks. Like most parrots, the Scarlet Macaw lays 2-4 eggs in a tree cavity, and their young will hatch in about 25 days. They fledge after about 105 days and leave their parents as late as a year.