the beautiful big colourful attractive - Macaws !!

They are big, colourful, attractive .. .. they are members of parrot family.  Macaws are beautiful, brilliantly colored members of the parrot family. 

Many macaws have vibrant plumage. The coloring is suited to life in Central and South American rain forests, with their green canopies and colorful fruits and flowers. The birds boast large, powerful beaks that easily crack nuts and seeds, while their dry, scaly tongues have a bone inside them that makes them an effective tool for tapping into fruits. Macaws also have gripping toes that they use to latch onto branches and to grab, hold, and examine items. The birds sport graceful tails that are typically very long.  

Macaws are intelligent, social birds that often gather in flocks of 10 to 30 individuals. Their loud calls, squawks, and screams echo through the forest canopy. Macaws vocalize to communicate within the flock, mark territory, and identify one another. Some species can even mimic human speech. Flocks sleep in the trees at night, and in the morning they may fly long distances to feed on fruit, nuts, insects, and snails. Some species also eat damp soil, which may help to neutralize chemicals in their fruity diet and ease their stomachs.  

Macaws typically mate for life. They not only breed with, but also share food with their mates and enjoy mutual grooming. In breeding season, mothers incubate eggs while fathers hunt and bring food back to the nest. There are at least 17 species of macaws, and several are endangered.  

These playful birds are popular pets, and many are illegally trapped for that trade … these wild parrots are popular and are being traded as exotic pets commanding a very high premium.  Of the many different Psittacidae (true parrots) genera, six are classified as macaws: Ara, Anodorhynchus, Cyanopsitta, Primolius, Orthopsittaca, and Diopsittaca.   

Proportionately larger beaks, long tails, and relatively bare, light-coloured medial (facial patch) areas distinguish macaws from other parrots. Strangely, it is perfectly legal to keep them !!!  .. .. According to the Indian Wildlife Protection Act 1972,  people  are not supposed to domesticate or breed wild species that are indigenous to India.

 

It is illegal to keep green parrots or even mynas as pets.  But, exotic species that are not native to India or of Indian origin can be domesticated as long as they are not released into the wild. If they are released, interactions with other animals can cause an imbalance in the existing food chain, and these become ‘invaded species’ like the red-eared slider variety of turtles. 

Sounds strange !! 

At Trade fair exhibition at Island ground, this private aviary charges Rs.40 as entry fee and further Rs.200 for this photo  ..  .. .. [the owner went out of the way explaining how couple of exotic pets got killed in the melee  getting trampled when they were allowing photographs free !! – he said that he lost a few lakhs due to such deaths !!]- The rest of the photos were taken at Vandalur zoo.  

 
With regards – S. Sampathkumar
13.2.2023