Macaw
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PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS:
The Scarlet macaw's general plumage is bright scarlet. It has a striking black and white bill and pale naked cheeks. It is red with green and yellow markings on blue wings, and measures about 36 inches. It ranges from tropical Mexico to Bolivia.
The Gold and Blue macaw has yellow under parts, blue back and tail, and several rows of black feathers on its bare, white face. These birds are found from Panama to Argentina and measure 32 to 36 inches.
The Hyacinth macaw is one of the largest macaws, measuring up to 40 inches. It is a lovely uniform cobalt blue with only a narrow strip of bare orange-yellow skin at the base of the lower bill. It inhabits the Brazilian forests south of the Amazon.
DISTRIBUTION and HABITAT:
The distribution of macaws is mostly in Central America and the northern part of South America. They generally inhabit forests and tall palms growing in swamps or alongside rivers.
BEHAVIOR:
Macaws usually live in pairs and a number of pairs may congregate with others to form a flock of several hundred individuals. There are regular roosting sites and in the early morning the flocks fly some distance in search of food. They return to spend the night in the roosting trees just before sunset, flying above the forest canopy.
Macaws use their beaks as an aid in both eating and as a "third foot" when climbing. Food is obtained using the beak. The beak is strong and is used to crush the seeds and nuts, while the thick fleshy tongue is used to move the food around. Very hard nuts are cracked open after the macaw files down the thickness of the shell in one place. This is done with the lower part of the beak.
DIET:
Although their diet consists mainly of fruits, seeds, nuts, leaves and bark, they also feed on small animal life.
REPRODUCTION and GROWTH:
Macaws are monogamous. Breeding takes place during the first half of the year. The nest is usually in a hole at the top of a tall dead tree. The hole may previously have been made and used by a woodpecker. The female lays one or two eggs and incubates them for 24-26 days, while the male feeds her.
On hatching, the young are blind and almost naked. The eyes open after 7-14 days. At first only the female feeds the young, but after about a week the male joins in. The young are fed by the parents' regurgitation of partially digested vegetable crop contents.
The young are born featherless. At ten weeks they are covered with feathers and the wings and tail have attained their full length. At six months it is hard to distinguish the young from the parents.
After the breeding season is over they molt. The old worn and faded feathers fall out and are replaced by new ones. The molt is gradual and takes place over several months.
