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They are ancient, they were here more than 500 years ago, before Brazil was discovered. Their feathers were used in the indigenous feather arts. But the colorful feathers and the ease with which they adapted to captivity made macaws a source of great greed for the Portuguese.

Hunting, until the 1980s, caused more than 10,000 macaws to be lost from the wild, putting them on the list of endangered species.

Surveys carried out in the 1980s placed the hyacinth macaw (Anodorhynchus hyacinthinus) on CITES Appendix I, the Red Data Book and the Official List of Endangered Species of Brazilian Fauna. The main factors that have led to the species’ decline are its capture for national and international trade, the de-characterization of the environment and the collection of feathers to make souvenirs.

In 1989, biologist Neiva Guedes came across a flock of hyacinth macaws in the Pantanal and became fascinated with the species, especially because she knew that they were doomed to disappear from the wild. In 1990, the Hyacinth Macaw Project was born out of a personal initiative by Neiva Guedes, who became an example of effort and dedication to protecting the species in the wild.

From the very beginning of her studies, Neiva Guedes considered and began to deal with the species as a flagship for the conservation of the Pantanal, applying a holistic view to the protection of the ecosystem. The biologist argues that actions in this type of project should not be directed exclusively at the species, but that it is important to consider the environment as a whole. Therefore, she emphasizes that habitat protection and recovery, dissemination and environmental education are actions that must be integrated when drawing up a conservation plan. She emphasizes the importance of several groups working together: teams of interdisciplinary specialists, the local population, volunteers, sponsors and others.

Neiva always stresses the importance of the hyacinth macaw for the ecosystem, among various aspects she mentions the importance of the species as seed dispersers and environmental engineers. According to the scientist, hyacinth macaws don’t start a cavity, but grow rapidly from small cavities already started by other species. This characteristic of the macaws is important because it makes it possible for more than 40 other species to reproduce, which occupy these cavities just like them. The hyacinth macaw, together with other biodiversity species, make up the important ecosystem services that sustain life and provide humanity with the resources it needs to survive.

With her efforts and commitment to research and conservation, Neiva Guedes began to win over partners and sponsors and formed a working team. In 2003, after countless difficulties in finding support and sponsors to carry out the project’s actions, she decided to create the Hyacinth Macaw Institute, a non-governmental, private, non-profit organization whose main purpose is to promote environmental conservation. The Institute became the legal entity for the Hyacinth Macaw Project and many others that have been implemented.

In December 2014, the species was removed from the Official List of Endangered Brazilian Fauna Species, but the results have not been encouraging. Trafficking is on the rise again, as punishments have become less severe for criminals caught with the birds or their eggs. In addition, other factors have left the species very vulnerable, such as climate change due to global warming, which affects reproductive success, deforestation, diseases due to low immunity and the vast fires that were accentuated and serious in 2019 and 2020, both in the Southern Pantanal and in the Northern Pantanal, which decimated large areas of great importance for the species. Another worrying factor that Neiva Guedes has been concentrating her efforts to combat is non-responsible tourism that uses wild animals as entertainment, as it has been potentiating problems that directly affect the species, such as diseases.

In order to minimize and try to reverse all these factors that are making the species so vulnerable, Neiva Guedes and the Hyacinth Macaw Institute have been working on several fronts, intensifying research, bringing together researchers from different areas, forming study groups, involving and interacting with environmental protection agencies, inspection agencies, NGOs that have interfaces in this mission and with sensitized society, which has always been a great ally. Social networks have also made a strong contribution to the involvement of contemporary society, where they have taken on a fundamental role, crossing the boundaries of interpersonal relationships and becoming an important tool, especially for raising awareness among different audiences. The possibility of providing scientific information in accessible, easy-to-understand language makes social networks an important ally for projects aimed at conserving biodiversity.

Neiva Guedes has become an international reference, being recognized for her tireless dedication over years of hard and continuous work. One of the most recent recognitions we would like to highlight was a tribute paid to her by Mauricio de Sousa Produções, through the “Donas da Rua da Ciência” project. As well as being on the cover of a special poster, Neiva also joined the virtual space of this Turma da Mônica project (Monica’s gang Project), created in partnership with UN Women.

Neiva Guedes is an example of a scientist who has marked humanity on a daily basis and is an inspiration to everyone, especially girls and women who seek a fairer society and fight for a balanced environment through the conservation of biodiversity.

The Hyacinth Macaw Institute is currently carrying out various research and conservation projects. In addition to its anchor project, the Hyacinth Macaw, it is also developing the Urban Birds – Macaws in the City project, among others. The Institute has also acted strongly in the area of advocacy and, especially, as an inducer of public policies, through the scientific knowledge generated by Neiva Guedes, her team and associated researchers. Among their important articles is a publication in Nature by Dr. Neiva Guedes and Dr. Eliane Vicente, which deals with the poisoning of hyacinth macaws by organophosphates. This is an important subsidy and alert for the formulation of public policies that deal with socio-economic development and environmental conservation. It should be noted that Scientific Reports – Nature and Science are the most important journals for science in the world. Also, in March 2021, Municipal Law No. 6,567 was passed, which recognizes the municipality of Campo Grande as the Capital of the Macaws and establishes September 22 as the Municipal Day for the Protection of Macaws, with the support of the Institute in its formulation. The bill was an initiative of the Campo Grande City Council and was approved by the Municipal Council. The law recognizes the work that the Institute does through the “Urban Birds – Macaws in the City” project.

To become a partner of the Hyacinth Macaw Institute and strengthen the important results that the organization has been achieving, there are various ways to support and interact with the institution, contributing to the execution of its activities. In addition to its sponsorship policy, there are campaigns and products for people and companies that demonstrate their socio-environmental responsibility towards society. Through the website, you can follow and choose how to help: https://www.institutoararaazul.org.br/como-ajudar/

Source: Instituto Arara Azul archives.

 

Text by: Eliza Mense

Translated by: Nuna Arakaki

Biologist, post-graduate in environmental education and business management, with 36 years’ experience in managing social and environmental projects. Since 2014, she has been a member of the Executive Board of the Hyacinth Macaw Institute, developing management and financial sustainability actions for the execution of research and conservation projects.