Military Macaw
Vulnerable
Forest
Mexico & South America
Diurnal
Herbivorous
Tropical Rainforest
Characteristics
The military macaw is one of the largest species of macaw, reaching 2.5 feet in height, including tail, with a 3.5 foot wingspan. They typically weigh between 2 and 2.5 pounds. Military macaws are predominantly green on the crown, neck, front, upper back and wings. Their foreheads are a striking deep red, and their flight feathers and rump are light blue. Their tails are reddish with yellow underneath. Like most macaws, their faces are bare with small black feathers arranged in lines. Their eyes are yellow and their beak is black. Adult males and females are indistinguishable. Juveniles have a duller coloration and gray eyes.
Habitat & Ecology
The military macaw has many isolated populations that live inconsistently throughout Mexico and several South American countries. In South America they are usually found just east of the Andes.
In South America, military macaws are found in humid lowland forest, gallery forest, and wooded foothills and canyons. In Mexico, they can be found in deciduous and semi-deciduous riparian forest, arid and semi-arid woodlands, and humid lowlands. Their habitat ranges in elevation from sea level to 4900 feet, but occasionally goes higher.
Diet
Military macaws are herbivorous, and the majority of their diet is made of up seeds. They are considered specialist feeders because they only eat a small selection of plants. Their diet also consists of fruits, leaves, flowers and latex from red frangipani plants, but to a much lesser extent. During breeding season, adult and nestling military macaws require higher amounts of proteins and lipids in their diet and will preferentially seek out foods that meet these requirements.
Macaws have a very powerful beak and tongue that helps them with their diet. Their beaks are large and powerful with a flexibility unattainable by most other animals. As humans, our upper mandible is fixed, meaning we can only move our lower jaw independently. In birds, the upper mandible is not fixed, adding an extra degree of flexibility. Parrots in particular have an astounding ability to move their upper and lower jaws independently. This allows them to do such things like peeling fruits and seeds in their mouths using only their beaks.
Behavior & Reproduction
All species of parrots are social, and the military macaw is no exception. Although they usually forage alone or in pairs, they roost communally in groups of 40-100 birds. These larger flocks may sometimes consist of more than one parrot species. Peak movement occurs in the mornings and evenings, with little to no movement during the afternoon. During most of the year they will stray further away from roosting sites, but during breeding season they never stray too far from the nest.
Macaws pair-bond for life and engage in grooming and regurgitation behavior for each other year-round. These behaviors are important for establishing strong relationships between parrots. Breeding season is highly dependent on the region, but only occurs once a year for each population. Nests are laid on cliff faces or high up in tree cavities. Females will lay 2-4 eggs, which are incubated for about 25-28 days. Females usually stay with the eggs and chicks while the male feeds both of them. Young parrots fledge at approximately 3 months of age, and sexual maturity for both male and female is reached at 2-4 years of age.
Protected Care: 50 years
Variable
2-4
1 year
Conservation
The military macaw is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List. In the last assessment performed in 2020, IUCN found the population to be in a steady decrease with only 2,000-7,000 mature individuals still in the wild. On CITES, the military macaw is listed on Appendix I, which is the highest protection. The most endangered species are on this list and the trade of the species for commercial reasons is prohibited. Additionally, the military macaw is listed as “Endangered” on the FWS Threatened and Endangered Species List, and as “Endangered” in Mexico.
The biggest threats to the military macaw are habitat loss and the illegal pet trade, both of which are leading to decreases in population in all parts of its range and threats of local extinction in some areas. Military macaws depend on a number of different species of trees for food and shelter, and prefer forests with greater biodiversity, thus logging or monoculture threaten them with habitat fragmentation and loss. Additionally, like all parrots, the military macaw is a popular pet, leading to the smuggling of them out of the wild and into an illegal pet trade. Unfortunately, upwards of 75% of smuggled animals do not survive the journey.
Fascinating Facts
- When excited, the white cheek patches of the military macaw will blush pink or red.
- The military macaw, like all parrots, has zygodactyl feet, which mean that two toes point forward and two toes point backward. This allows the macaws to grip better, which is important as they often hold their food with their feet or walk along branches rather than fly.
- The military macaw’s name was inspired by the olive green color of the macaw’s feathers, which is similar in color to military uniforms.
About Our Animals
There are two military macaws that call the Oakland Zoo home, Stan and Jalapeño. Stan has been with us since 2017. She came to us from the L.A. Zoo, where she ended up after being confiscated by the USFWS at the Mexico-California border. She was likely young when she was brought in, so we know her hatch year to be 2002. Additionally, the site of her rapture was never revealed, which means that she couldn’t be returned to her home.
Jalapeño came to live with us in 2020 after being surrendered by a private owner. Her age is unknown. Jalapeño is very easygoing and loves training with the keepers. She is very “flock-oriented” and thinks everything is a team effort — when keepers are working in the exhibit, she will try to ‘help’ in a way that isn’t actually very helpful! Jalapeño and Stan spend most of their time together and can usually be spotted within sight of each other.
Our Role
The Oakland Zoo has partnered with ARCAS, a non-profit Guatemalan organization that works to end the illegal wildlife trade in South America and rehabilitate affected animals.
If you are interested in having a parrot as a pet, do extensive research before deciding. Parrots are long-lived birds, and may outlive many humans. They require lots of stimulation, enrichment, and attention. If you are determined to get a parrot, please consider getting a rescued parrot as opposed to a young/baby parrot to avoid the risk of getting a parrot that was smuggled from the wild (a very traumatic experience for birds) and supporting the illegal wildlife trade. Oakland Zoo is a conservation partner to Mickaboo Companion Bird Rescue, a good organization to adopt from.
You can learn more about how we are Taking Action for macaws here.
