Blue and Gold – Ara ararauna
Talking Ability: Moderate to Good
Noise Level: Extremely High
 |
||
 |
| Mad Max |
ax is my pet Blue and Gold Macaw and in my humble opinion, he is a proud representative of the most beautiful of all of the macaw species. His primary colors are a shimmering combination of turquoise blue on his back and tail, splashing into a luxurious cobalt blue on his wings. His belly is adorned with a rich golden color that spreads to the underside of his tail and flight feathers. The crown of his head is a superlative emerald green in color and his beak a velvety pearl black. He has a bare white face with an incredible pattern of tiny black feathers following the contour of his beautiful eyes. Max knows about 40 words. He is very smart, learns fast, and at times he is a little mischievous. He’s good looking, he knows it, and he takes full advantage of it. Its easy to see why more and more people want a Macaw for a pet. Those virtues alone would make most pet lovers want to go out and buy one right away.
Unfortunately, Max was not always like this….
 |
| Max Chewing up the flowerbed |
Max is my first macaw, I found him on Kijiji (Canada’s version of Ebay). I replied to the ad, set up an appointment, and made my way to George Town, Ontario to purchase him. The owner told me that Max was 4 years old and I would be his third owner. He also told me that he had owned Max for only 3 months. In hindsight, I guess what he told me should have raised some red flags but For some strange reason it didn’t and I bought him anyway. After some creative thinking (a bribe), I managed to get him in his carrier and put him in the car for the ride home. (I had to wear ear plugs for the whole trip). When we got home I took Max out of the car and set his carrier on the table while I put his cage together. An hour later and about 4 good hard bites to my hand, I finally got him out of the carrier and into the assembled cage. For 3 days, he wouldn’t come out of his cage and he squawked the whole time. When he finally did come out after the 3rd day, all he wanted to do was climb to the top of his cage and chew up all of my crown molding. As time went on, he chewed up two remotes, 2 surround sound speakers, and quite a bit of the crown molding in the living room.
 |
| Max Eating Supper |
That’s when i really started to feel I was in over my head. “This beautiful bird is the bird from hell and it’s to late to get my money back”. The situation was deteriorating rapidly and I had to find a way to get through to Max so I went online and started searching google for articles on how to raise problem or second hand Macaws. To my surprise, I found dozens of articles on this subject. I followed the articles and spent countless hours working with Max trying to make him feel comfortable enough to respond to me in a positive manner. As time went on Max came around and I started to see some positive results. We began to have more fun and I could see an eagerness about him that pleased me. He still has his moments, but they are less frequent.
 |
| Itchy Wing Pits… |
This has been a tremendous experience for me and I have learned that a neglected Macaw will need a lot more love, training, and discipline than a newborn baby. A new and inexperienced Macaw owner may not be able to provide or even cope with the level of training required and as a result, the Macaw may get passed on again. This can’t be good for the birds health and well being. As I close this article, one very important lesson comes to mind. If you are still thinking of buying a Macaw after reading this, Find a reputable breeder and buy a fully weaned baby macaw from him. It will, in my opinion, make your experience a lot easier and of course more rewarding. Leave the neglected older macaws for the experts.
 |
||
 |
| Blue and Gold Macaws Flock to the Palm Trees |
he Blue and Gold Macaw is usually between 32 and 35 inches in length with about a three and a half foot wingspan and weighs between 900 and 1200 grams. This beautiful parrot is native to pretty much the entire northern half of South America. They prefer the Rain Forest and congregate in large flocks in the Trees and vines of these forests. These magnificent birds are monogamous and usually reach sexual maturity at around 6 years of age, some later. The Blue and Gold Macaw likes to make its nest in the cavities of the tall trees in the Rain Forest. Although they are infamous for their chewing ability, they are unable to make these cavities themselves. They may look for a tree where a main branch has broken off and a cavity is formed, over time by fungus and termite decomposition or they may move into an abandoned woodpecker hole. They have also been observed nesting in the tops of dead palm trees in the large palm swamps populated by the Aguaje palm. When these trees die, their soft trunk center is exposed to the elements, fungus, and beetles. As a result the soft center rots out leaving a hollow tube for the Blue and gold Macaws to nest in.
 |
| Proud Parents Nesting |
Usually they will lay 2 or 3 eggs over a 2 day period and the incubation period can be from 21 to 28 days. They are devoted parents and look after their young even after they are grown. Their chicks are helpless, featherless, and blind at birth and it takes between 7 and 14 weeks before they start to grow feathers and their eyes finally open. During this time, The young will actively beg for food by flapping their wings and squawking loudly. The mother latches on to the baby’s beak and starts regurgitating food from her crop into the baby’s mouth. The baby Blue and Gold is able to take flight about 90 days after hatching.
 |
| wild blue and gold Macaw in full flight |
The Blue and Gold Macaw in the wild is quickly becoming an endangered species. Destruction of their habitat due to logging is the primary reason. Farmers clearing the forests to plant crops, ranchers looking for more grazing area, and the illegal pet trade are secondary, but I find them just as disparaging. I feel they should bear closer scrutiny, especially the illegal pet trade. Logging is their greatest danger only because the biggest trees are selected and it is done on a much grander scale. The Illegal pet trade, even though it’s on a smaller scale, still decimates their numbers considerably and it too needs to be addressed more aggressively. Thousands die each year from stress because they are illegally transported into the United States and abroad. Cooperation and communication between Local Governments and Conservation Authorities is desperately needed and more money, manpower, and tougher penalties on the poachers should be pursued aggressively.
|
|
|
|
As I learn more about these magnificent creatures, I have found that not a lot is known about macaw family life. As I stated above, it is believed that they are truly monogamous and their production rate is low, producing only a few young every year. Some may live upwards of 60 years, but evidence shows that they aren’t given that chance because of poaching, the pet trade and loss of habitat from farming and logging. While only a few of the Macaw species are still thriving, there are a some of the species (about a half a dozen or so) that are considered critically endangered. There is a common belief that only about about 1000 red fronted and blue throated Macaws still exist while the Spix and Glaucus Macaws are pretty much extinct. The Hyacinth Macaw population is believed to be under 3000.
It is truly a race against the clock as Conservationists work feverishly to prevent this from happening by monitoring their population and habitat, documenting their behaviors and habits, and looking for new strategies to better protect their survival in the wild. It is tedious work with very little reward as it seems to be a loosing battle because of the logging, farming, and the pet trade. Until we can fully come to grips with our own human nature (greed) and their urgency to survive and flourish, we may not be able to avoid the extinction of many species of these magnificent Macaws.
In closing, my advice to anyone who still wants one of these magnificent birds for a pet is to buy from a reputable breeder and leave the wild macaws “in the wild“.
