Protecting The Scarlet
Macaw From Extinction
(InfoWeb Press) The scarlet macaw or
guacamaya is a large-sized bird, measuring
up to 79 cm and weighing of up to 900 grams.
It is characterized for having a long tail.
Its color is scarlet, with yellow feathers
partly covering its wings; its tail feathers
are called rectrices, they are blue, with
two central scarlet colored feathers.
Its face is devoid of feathers, exposing its
white bone colored skin. It has a strong and
hooked beak that serves to open the hard
seeds it feeds from.
Its principal food source are the seeds of
trees such as the espabel, almond tree,
mangrove, ginocuabe, ojoche, Sandbox tree
and Kapok trees.
It nests in hollow tree trunks in heights
superior to 6 meters, preferring the tops of
Brazilian firetrees, Kapok, ceibo barrigón
trees.
In this country, they were abundant
principally in the Pacific Ocean and the
northern regions, where it was common to see
them flying in big flocks approximately 40
years ago, but today only about 260
individuals inhabit the region of Carara, a
few may also be spotted in the lower region
of the Tempisque river, between Palo verde
and the Rosario peaks, Caballito, Barra
Honda and the Jesús peaks located in the
province of Guanacaste.
A little known population also exists in the
Osa Peninsula, which is easy to spot in the
mountain ranges near the Port of Jiménez and
next to the Oro River in the regions
surrounding Carate beach.
It is also possible to observe a few
specimens in the northern zone of the
country. It is very probable that they are
dispersed between the northern part of Costa
Rica and the southern par of Nicaragua.
The list of dangers that the macaw faces
include deforestation, which eliminates
their nesting sites and their food sources
and their persecution in order to be
marketed as pets.
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