They are large macaws, measuring up to 86 cm and weighing between 995 and 1380 g. The upper part of the body is blue and the lower part is yellow, it has rows of black facial feathers and a black throat.
Status
Considered Least Concern (LC) by the IUCN and MMA (2018).
Source: IUCN
Geographical Distribution
Panama, Colombia, the Guianas, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Paraguay, and Argentina. In Brazil, they occur in the North and Central-West regions, in Bahia, Minas Gerais, and São Paulo. Since 2002, they have been living in Campo Grande, the capital of Mato Grosso do Sul, where they can be easily observed.
Habitat
Floodplains with buritizais, babassu and forest edges. It currently lives in many Brazilian cities.
Food
Fruits and seeds mostly from palms.
Threats
It is not in imminent danger. But like most Brazilian animals, this species has problems locally, that is, it is abundant in some places and in others it is not very frequent, as the destruction of the environment in these places has driven the macaws away. It is often found in captivity.
Distribution map
Source: IUCN
Taxonomy
Class: Birds
Order: Psittaciformes
Family: Psittacidae
Genre: Ara
Scientific name: Ara ararauna.
Popular name: Blue-and-yellow macaw, yellow-bellied macaw
