RED AND GREEN MACAWS

Did you know? Two in three guests at Rainforest Expeditions lodges see these brightly-plumed birds!

The Red and Green Macaw, along with its relatives in the Ara Genus, has a long pointed tail, a bare-looking face, and gaudy plumage. Its feathers are mainly a deep scarlet, with green highlights on the upper wings.

While you may notice that this brilliant bird looks a lot like the Scarlet Macaw, it doesn’t have the Scarlet Macaw’s yellow upper wing coverts. Another more subtle difference is the much larger head and the lack of black feather patterns in the head. These feather patterns are like fingerprints: every individual has a different pattern!

Red and Green Macaws are one of the prized sightings of the Amazon.! You never get tired of seeing them, especially against a green backdrop from above the canopy tower at our Rainforest Expeditions lodges!

Red and Green Macaw Fun Facts

• Nest in ironwood trees: These trees are hardwoods from the Dypteryx genus. Until the 1990s there were healthy populations of ironwood because the wood was so hard that it destroyed chainsaws! But late in that decade, loggers learned to use a titanium alloy to cut ironwood trees. Now, there’s a crisis in many regions of the Amazon. Ironwood is exported to China for floorboards. Because of this, it’s disappearing close to rivers and roads outside of protected areas — bad news for the macaws.


• Small families: Red and Green Macaws lay one to four eggs at a time. Often, one or more eggs does not hatch. When more than one egg does hatch, the largest chick (the firstborn) monopolizes all the food. The siblings die from starvation! Our Tambopata macaw project uses creative techniques to rescue chicks from starvation. This is useful in regions where Macaw populations are below carrying capacity.

How to see the Red and Green Macaw and other wildlife on an Amazon jungle tour

• Visit during nesting season: From November to March, Red and Green Macaws spend most of their time at their nest. You can spend hours peering at them from a scope, listening to the conversations they hold as one sits on the nest, and the other perches on a nearby branch.


• Watch for them from the canopy tower: Usually, Red and Green Macaws perch with the bright sky behind them, making good photos challenging. However, when seen from above while standing on our canopy towers, you get a gorgeous green backdrop, perfect for photos!


• Walk with a trained guide: Visit the stunning Rainforest Expedition lodges in the Peruvian Amazon. One of our experienced guides will help you find them!