DID YOU KNOW?
Red-bellied macaws are one of the most difficult parrots to breed in captivity due to their lack of ability to adapt to captive conditions.
Size:
46 cm (18 in)
Weight:
300 g (10.5 oz)
Subspecies including nominate:
one
Colour Adult:
Both adults medium-sized green macaws with roughened skin on bare yellow face; blue wash on forecrown; grey scalloping pattern on green chest; brown/red mid abdomen to vent; dull yellow on underwings and undertail. Beak grey/black. Eye brown.
Colour Juvenile:
As in adult but upper mandible grey, lower mandible pale grey.
Call:
High-pitched; wailing in flight. Other notes loud and rhythmical. Purring sounds while feeding. Flocks may be loud.
Content Sources:
CITES
BirdLife International
Cornell Lab of Ornithology/Birds of the World
A Guide to Parrots of the World, Juniper and Parr, 1998.
Parrots of the World, Forshaw and Cooper, 1977.
Parrots of the World, Forshaw, 2006. 2010 edition
Parrots in Aviculture, Low, 1992.
Parrots: Their Care and Breeding, Low, 1986.
Psittacine Aviculture, Schubot, Clubb and Clubb, 1992.
Captive Status:
Uncommon
Longevity:
May live up to 40 yrs in the wild.
Housing:
Aviary or suspended enclosure, minimum length 4 m (13.1 ft), or 3 m (9.8 ft) for breeding with access to larger flight for rest of year.
Diet:
Mixture of small seeds; canary, oats, safflower, millet spray, limited sunflower; sprouted mung beans, cooked butterbeans and lentils; corn on the cob, green leaves of spinach, Swiss chard, lettuce, sowthistle, dandelion and chickweed, emphasis on fresh fruit and vegetables daily, palm fruits if available; nuts: walnuts, hazelnuts, pecans, roasted peanuts, complete pellet for macaws.
Enrichment:
Are chewers; always provide bird-safe wood (fir, pine, willow and elder) and limbs for them to chew; heat sterilized pine cones, vegetable tanned leather toys. Enjoys bathing, so provide overhead misters or shallow water bowls.
Nest Box Size:
12″ x 12″ x 18″ (30.5 cm x 30.5 cm x 46 cm) vertical box.
Clutch Size:
2 to 4
Fledging Age:
11 weeks
Hatch Weight:
—
Peak Weight:
—
Weaning Weight:
—
World Population:
Unknown but described as fairly common; stable at present but a concern for future decreases.
IUCN Red List Status:
Least Concern
CITES Listing:
Appendix II
Threat Summary:
Not globally threatened. Locally common throughout range with the exception of Colombia and Guyana, the latter of which sees local trapping of the birds. In Venezuela, destruction of palms for industry has caused a significant decline in population.
Range:
Trinidad, Guianas, E Venezuela to S Colombia, E Ecuador, E Peru, N Bolivia to Amazonian Brazil.
Habitat:
Found up to 500 m (1640 ft); dependent on the Moriche palm (Mauritia flexuosa), which are found in swampy or seasonally flooded areas; also found in dense moist forest, gallery forest and open savannas and grasslands.
Wild Diet:
Feeds mostly on Moriche palm (Mauritia flexuosa) fruits, but berries and other fruits, especially Euterpe and Roystonea oleracea, are taken.
Ecology and Behaviour:
Gregarious birds with flocks of up to 100 reported, roosts in Moriche palms (Mauritia flexuosa), occasionally nomadic into cultivated areas.
Clutch and Egg Size:
2 to 4, ellipitical eggs, 42.5 x 27.0 mm (1.6 x 1 in).
Breeding Season:
Trinidad: February and September. Colombia: February-May. Guyana: February-June. Nest is a hollow in a stump or fallen log.
