A parrot with vivid red, yellow and blue plumage and a large hooked bill.
Pale, nearly featherless skin is visible around the eyes.
Scarlet macaws can accept and rear chicks moved from other nests. During conservation work in Peru, females first approached newly placed chicks, often preening them or attempting to feed them. Feeding of the introduced chicks increased over subsequent days.
A 2021 study at Tambopata in southeastern Peru ran across three breeding seasons from October 2016 to March 2019. Researchers temporarily hand-reared chicks, including those struggling in their original nests, before placing them with wild breeding pairs. After placement, weight and crop filling were monitored and supplementary food was provided when necessary. All 28 foster chicks were accepted and 25 fledged. In ten chick pairs with feeding comparisons, foster chicks initially received less food, but the difference from resident chicks narrowed over approximately ten days. Natural parental behaviour was combined with close human support.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.
In Central America, poaching and forest loss threaten regional scarlet macaw populations. In April 2025, the Wildlife Conservation Society reported hand-rearing underweight chicks in Guatemala’s Maya Biosphere Reserve. After growing, chicks are placed in foster nests or released through an opened flight enclosure. Protecting nesting trees and forest from fire and illegal cattle-ranching expansion is also a regional conservation priority.