Macaw Compendium
Aratingidae / Aratinginae
Genus Ara:
Genus Ara represents the greatest group of Macaws. Some of them
are the most popular parrots in the world, others suffer from extinction.
These colorful and impressive neotropical parrots are distributed in
the Middle and South Americas. Their tail is longer than the body and
the beak has a great upper mandible which is strongly
downward curved and has a notch for the lower mandible
to fit in. The cheeks are more or less unfeathered.
There are relationships to
Anodorhynchus
and
Cyanopsitta
which also
file under "Macaws" in common language. One of the smaller ones of this
group, Hahn's Macaw, now forms it's own genus
Diopsittaca
because of
it's relationships to the Conures. This one in the following list is marked
with an asterix (*) in front of his former scientific name.
A good compilation of Macaws as pets can be found in Jodi Giannini's
"Large Macaw FAQ"
Those of you who are interested in conservational programs concerning macaws
should have a look at the pages of the
World Parrot Trust (U.S.)
and read about the
The Macaw Clay Lick and the Macaw Research Project at Tambopata, Peru.
Ara ambigua Buffon's Macaw
Ara ararauna Blue and gold Macaw,
Ara auricollis Yellow-collared Macaw,
Ara chloroptera Green-winged Macaw,
Ara couloni Blue-headed Macaw,
Ara glaucogularis (A. caninde) Blue-throated Macaw,
Ara macao Scarlet Macaw,
Ara manilata Red-bellied Macaw
Ara maracana Illiger's Macaw
Ara militaris Military Macaw
*Ara nobilis (Diopsittaca) Hahn's Macaw,
Ara rubrogenys Red-fronted Macaw,
Ara severa Severe Macaw
Created for the Macaw's homepage Feb. 1996
pfeffer@club.tu-clausthal.de