Fun Facts About Scarlet Macaw

Macaws are the beautiful, brilliantly colored members of the parrot family. Their plumage is mostly scarlet, but the rump and tail-covert feathers are light blue, the greater upper wing coverts are yellow, the upper sides of the flight feathers of the wings are dark blue as are the ends of the tail feathers, and the undersides of the wing and tail flight feathers are dark red with metallic gold iridescence.

Some individuals may have green in the wings. They also like to eat a lot of seeds but what they really love are the tropical fruits. They can measure almost a meter between 81 and 97 centimeters long, including the tail. They can live up to 30 years but if they are captive that number can grow until 75 years.

Macaws are intelligent, social birds that often gather in flocks of 10 to 30 individuals. Their loud calls, squawks, and screams echo through the forest canopy. Macaws vocalize to communicate within the flock, mark territory, and identify one another. Some species can even mimic human speech. Macaws typically mate for life. They not only breed with, but also share food with their mates and enjoy mutual grooming. In breeding season, mothers incubate eggs while fathers hunt and bring food back to the nest.

The Scarlet Macaw lays two or three white eggs in a tree cavity. The female incubates the eggs for about 28 days, and the chicks fledge from the nest about 90 days after hatching. They don't leave their parents until a year later. Their eyes can let you know if they are young or old, when they are young they have black eyes and when they are old they have yellow eyes.

Their eyes can let you know if they are young or old, when they are young they have black eyes and when they are old they have yellow eyes. These playful birds are popular pets, and many are illegally trapped for that trade. The rain forest homes of many species are also disappearing at an alarming rate. They live in the sub tropical and tropical rain forest, all around Central America. Tropical forests, tree savannas, wooded banks of large rivers. There are 17 species of macaws, and several are endangered.