Ara chloropterus
The Red-and-green Macaw, scientifically known as Ara chloropterus and often called the Green-winged Macaw, is one of the largest and most iconic parrots in the Neotropics. Reaching lengths of up to 90-95 cm (35-37 inches) from head to tail and weighing 1.2-1.7 kg (2.6-3.7 lbs), its striking plumage features a predominantly brilliant red body, green coverts on the middle of its wings, and bright blue on its primary flight feathers, rump, and lower tail. A distinctive bare white facial patch ad...
Primarily inhabiting lowland tropical rainforests, humid evergreen forests, and gallery forests along rivers, the Red-and-green Macaw generally occurs at elevations below 500 meters, though it can be found up to 1000 meters in some Andean foothills.
Their diet consists mainly of various seeds, nuts, and fruits, particularly hard-shelled nuts like Brazil nuts, which their formidable beaks are perfectly adapted to crack. They also frequent clay licks to ingest mineral-rich earth.
Red-and-green Macaws are diurnal, spending their days foraging and interacting in the forest canopy, and gathering in large, noisy communal roosts high in trees at night. Their foraging strategies involve using their powerful beaks to crack open hard nuts and fruits, often travelling long distanc...
The Red-and-green Macaw boasts a wide distribution across northern and central South America, extending from eastern Panama through Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana. Its range continues south through Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia, covering much of the vast Amazon basin in Bra...
Least Concern
- The Red-and-green Macaw possesses one of the strongest bite forces of any bird, capable of cracking extremely hard nuts like Brazil nuts with ease. - These macaws can live for over 50 years in the wild and often exceed 70 years in captivity, making them one of the longest-lived bird species. - ...