# Scarlet macaw (*Ara macao*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/scarlet-macaw  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The scarlet macaw (Ara macao) is a species in the family Psittacidae, order Psittaciformes. It has been recorded in 46 countries, most often in Costa Rica, Peru and Brazil. Its IUCN Red List status is Least Concern.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | Not recorded |
| Length | Not recorded |
| Lifespan | Not recorded |
| Main food | fruit, nut, seed, flower, nectar |
| Habitat | Not recorded |
| Egg incubation | 26 days |
| Young per litter or clutch | 2 |
| Conservation status | Least Concern (IUCN) |
| Recorded in | 46 countries |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Aves
- order: Psittaciformes
- family: Psittacidae
- genus: Ara
- species: *Ara macao* (Linnaeus, 1758)

Synonyms: *Psittacus macao*

## Where it has been recorded

Countries with openly licensed sighting records on GBIF (records in brackets). Recorded sightings, not a definitive range.

Costa Rica (82565), Peru (12399), Brazil (8784), Colombia (8542), Ecuador (5232), Venezuela (1662), Guyana (1436), French Guiana (737), Panama (604), Bolivia (454), Suriname (382), Mexico (172), United States (57), Belize (27), Guatemala (22), Honduras (18), Nicaragua (16), Germany (8), Japan (8), Netherlands (8), El Salvador (8), Australia (5), France (5), India (5), Puerto Rico (5), Trinidad & Tobago (5), Canada (4), Maldives (4), Guadeloupe (3), Taiwan (3), Argentina (2), Belgium (2), Finland (2), Malaysia (2), Portugal (2), Vietnam (2), Antigua & Barbuda (1), Bulgaria (1), St. Barthélemy (1), Curaçao (1), Denmark (1), Spain (1), Grenada (1), Cayman Islands (1), Sint Maarten (1), Thailand (1)

## Common questions

### Where does the scarlet macaw live?

The scarlet macaw has openly licensed sighting records from 46 countries on GBIF. The most records come from Costa Rica, Peru, Brazil, Colombia and Ecuador. These are recorded sightings, not a definitive range.

### Is the scarlet macaw endangered?

The scarlet macaw is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, meaning it is not currently at risk of extinction.

### What does the scarlet macaw eat?

Its recorded main food is fruit, nut, seed, flower and nectar.

### What kind of animal is the scarlet macaw?

The scarlet macaw (Ara macao) belongs to the family Psittacidae in the order Psittaciformes.

## Sources

- [GBIF Backbone Taxonomy](https://www.gbif.org/dataset/d7dddbf4-2cf0-4f39-9b2a-bb099caae36c), CC BY 4.0, live API 2026-11-11. GBIF Secretariat. GBIF Backbone Taxonomy. Checklist dataset https://doi.org/10.15468/39omei accessed via GBIF.org.
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/), CC0 1.0, live API 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata, the free knowledge base.
- [GBIF occurrence aggregates (CC0 and CC BY records only)](https://www.gbif.org/occurrence/search), CC BY 4.0, live API 2026-11-11. GBIF.org occurrence search, country facet counts restricted to CC0 1.0 and CC BY 4.0 records.
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/), Per file, live API 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Licence and creator recorded per file.
- [English Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/), CC BY-SA 4.0, live API 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia.

Cite as: Scarlet macaw (Ara macao). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/scarlet-macaw