MundoAndino Home : Andes Argentina Guide at MundoAndino
Blue-winged Macaw
The Blue-winged Macaw (Primolius maracana), in aviculture more commonly known as '''Illiger's Macaw', is a species of macaw found in central and eastern South America. It was previously placed in the genus Araor Propyrrhura.
Description
It has a total length of approximately 40 cm (16 in). As most other small macaws, it has a heavy black bill, a long tail and a mainly green plumage. The upperside of the remiges and primary coverts are blue, as indicated by its common name. The underside of the wings is yellowish, the tail-tip, crown and cheeks are bluish, and the tail-base and small belly-patch are red. The iris is amber. It and the Red-bellied Macaw are the only macaws where the bare facial-skin is yellowish, but this often fades to white in captivity. Unlike the Red-bellied Macaw, the Blue-winged has a red frontlet and lower back. Blue-winged Macaws have been known to reach an age of 50-60 years.
Habitat and food
The Blue-winged Macaw occurs in eastern and southern Brazil (with a remnant population north-east), eastern Paraguay and, at least formerly, in far north-eastern Argentina. It occurs in evergreen and deciduous forests, with a preference for gallery forest. They mainly feed on seeds of Cnidoscolus phyllacanthus, Jatropha, Guazuma ulmifolia and the non-native Melia azederach. However, the birds also feed on fruits and nuts.
Reproduction
The Blue-winged Macaw attain sexual maturity between 2 and 4 years after they are born. Adult females usually produce two eggs which take approximately 29 days to hatch. Young Blue-winged Macaws learn to fly about 11 weeks after they have hatched. They stay with their parents for about a year after learning to fly. Relatively little information exists on its reproduction in the wild, but the breeding season in north-eastern Brazil is apparently from December to February.
Threats
These birds are affected mostly by deforestation. They were also captured for the cagebird trade - from 1977 to 1979, 183 birds arrived to the United States from Paraguay. It has declined in the southern part of its range, and there are no recent records from the Misiones Province in Argentina. Therefore, it was previously considered vulnerable. Information from Brazil suggests it remains widespread and even has re-colonised areas in its historical range in southern Rio de Janeiro. This has led to it being downlisted to near threatened.
References
BirdLife International. (2006). Species factsheet: Primolius maracana.'' Retrieved March 3, 2007, from http://www.birdlife.org.
ANIMAL BYTES - Illiger's Macaw
http://www.arthurgrosset.com/sabirds/blue-wingedmacaw.html
External links
Blue-winged Macaw videos on the Internet Bird Collection
Photo of a captive Blue-headed Macaw
Blue-winged Macaw photo gallery VIREO
Photo; Aticle & synopsis arthurgrosset–"South American Birds"
Photo-High Res; Article tropicalbirding
Need more information for your travel research or homework?
Ask your questions at the forum about Birds of Argentina or help others to find answers.
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article Blue-winged Macaw
