The Blue-and-Yellow Macaw(Ara ararauna), also known as the Blue-and-Gold Macaw is a new world parrot that is classified in the order Psittaciformes and the family Psittacidae.
Physical Characteristics
A Blue-and-Yellow Macaw has a blue back, blue wings, and a blue tail except for the underside which is a golden hue. Its chest and belly are yellow, and the underside of the wings are also yellow. The forecrown is green. The face is white and almost bare except for dark feathered streaks. Blue-and-Yellow Macaws have a blackish-green streak across their throat, and their bills are black.
| Length | 81-86 cm(2’7.9”-2’9.9”) |
| Wingspan | 76.2-91.4cm(2’6”-2’11.8”) |
| Weight | 995 gm-1.4 kg(2.14-3.1 lbs.) |
Range
Blue-and-Yellow Macaws live in Eastern Panama through Colombia, Eastern & Southern Venezuela, the Guianas, Eastern Ecuador, Eastern Peru and Northern Bolivia to Brazil.
Habitat
Blue-and-Yellow Macaws inhabit gallery forests, seasonally flooded várzea forests, and palm filled swamps.
Breeding
Blue-and-Yellow Macaws nest in a cavity of a dead Mauritia or other palm tree. The clutch size is 1-3 eggs. The eggs are white, and incubated for 24-26 days. The hatchlings are featherless and blind, and will stay in the nest hole until they are fledged. Blue-and-Yellow Macaws, just like other macaw species, are monogamous, this means they mate for life. The Blue-and-Yellow Macaw reaches sexual maturity at about four years old.
Diet
Blue-and-Yellow Macaws eat seeds, nuts, fruit, palm leaves, flowers, and nectar. They also eat clay from “clay licks” this aids the digestion of its food, and is a source of minerals.
Predators
Hawks and eagles prey on Blue-and-Yellow Macaws.
Conservation Status
The Blue-and-Yellow Macaw is listed as least concern.
Fun Facts
- Just like many other parrot species, the Blue-and-Yellow Macaw can mimic human words and other sounds.
- A Blue-and-Yellow Macaw’s bill is so strong that it can crack open the hardest Brazil nut.
- Pele is a Blue-and-Yellow Macaw that lives at the Oregon Zoo; He paints pictures by holding a brush in his bill.
- The Blue-and-Yellow Macaw can live up to 70 years.
