# Blue & Yellow Macaw

<table border="1" id="bkmrk-" style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 30.1235%; height: 286.782px;"><colgroup><col style="width: 100%;"></col></colgroup><tbody><tr style="height: 208.391px;"><td style="height: 208.391px;">[![Blue-and-Yellow-Macaw.jpg](https://ned.apes.org.uk/uploads/images/gallery/2024-08/iJG0c4qtHxW0f0Xk-blue-and-yellow-macaw.jpg)](https://ned.apes.org.uk/uploads/images/gallery/2023-06/F8hsEM9S9MZQvbZk-220px-ball-python-lucy.jpg)</td></tr><tr style="height: 78.3906px;"><td style="height: 78.3906px;"> </td></tr></tbody></table>

# Blue &amp; Yellow Macaw

<table id="bkmrk-kingdom%3A-animalia-ph"><tbody><tr><th class="section-header" colspan="2">[Scientific classification](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taxonomy_(biology) "Taxonomy (biology)")<span class="plainlinks">[![Edit this classification](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8a/OOjs_UI_icon_edit-ltr.svg/15px-OOjs_UI_icon_edit-ltr.svg.png)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Template:Taxonomy/Arini "Edit this classification")</span></th></tr><tr><td>Domain:</td><td>[Eukaryota](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eukaryote "Eukaryote")</td></tr><tr><td>Kingdom:</td><td>[Animalia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Animal "Animal")</td></tr><tr><td>Phylum:</td><td>[Chordata](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chordate "Chordate")</td></tr><tr><td>Class:</td><td>[Aves](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bird "Bird")</td></tr><tr><td>Order:</td><td>[Psittaciformes](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parrot "Parrot")</td></tr><tr><td>Family:</td><td>[Psittacidae](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psittacidae "Psittacidae")</td></tr><tr><td>Subfamily:</td><td>[Arinae](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neotropical_parrot "Neotropical parrot")</td></tr><tr><td>Tribe:</td><td>[Arini](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arini_(tribe) "Arini (tribe)")</td></tr><tr><th class="section-header" colspan="2">Groups included</th></tr><tr><td class="section-content" colspan="2">*[Anodorhynchus](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anodorhynchus "Anodorhynchus")*  
*[Ara](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ara_(bird) "Ara (bird)")*  
*[Cyanopsitta](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spix%27s_macaw "Spix's macaw")*  
*[Primolius](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Primolius "Primolius")*  
*[Orthopsittaca](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red-bellied_macaw "Red-bellied macaw")*  
*[Diopsittaca](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red-shouldered_macaw "Red-shouldered macaw")*

</td></tr></tbody></table>

**Macaws** are a group of [New World parrots](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neotropical_parrot "Neotropical parrot") that are long-tailed and often colorful, in the tribe [Arini](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arini_(tribe) "Arini (tribe)").<sup class="reference" id="bkmrk-%5B1%5D">[\[1\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macaw#cite_note-1)</sup> They are popular in [aviculture](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aviculture "Aviculture") or as [companion parrots](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Companion_parrot "Companion parrot"), although there are conservation concerns about several species in the wild.

## Biology

Of the many different [Psittacidae](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psittacidae "Psittacidae") (true parrots) [genera](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genus "Genus"), six are classified as macaws: *[Ara](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ara_(bird) "Ara (bird)")*, *[Anodorhynchus](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anodorhynchus "Anodorhynchus")*, *[Cyanopsitta](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyanopsitta "Cyanopsitta")*, *[Primolius](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Primolius "Primolius")*, *[Orthopsittaca](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red-bellied_macaw "Red-bellied macaw")*, and *[Diopsittaca](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red-shouldered_macaw "Red-shouldered macaw")*. Previously, the members of the genus *Primolius* were placed in *Propyrrhura*, but the former is correct in accordance with [ICZN](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Commission_on_Zoological_Nomenclature "International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature") rules.<sup class="reference" id="bkmrk-%5B2%5D">[\[2\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macaw#cite_note-2)</sup> In addition, the related macaw-like [thick-billed parrot](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thick-billed_parrot "Thick-billed parrot") is sometimes referred to as a "macaw", although it is not phylogenetically considered to be a macaw species. Macaws are native to [Central America](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_America "Central America") and [North America](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_America "North America") (only [Mexico](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mexico "Mexico")), [South America](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_America "South America"), and formerly the [Caribbean](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caribbean "Caribbean"). Most species are associated with forests, but others prefer woodland or savannah-like habitats.<sup class="reference" id="bkmrk-%5B3%5D">[\[3\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macaw#cite_note-Abramson-3)</sup>

Proportionately larger beaks, long tails, and relatively bare, light-coloured medial (facial patch) areas distinguish macaws from other parrots. Sometimes the facial patch is smaller in some species and limited to a yellow patch around the eyes and a second patch near the base of the beak in the members of the genus *[Anodorhynchus](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anodorhynchus "Anodorhynchus")*. A macaw's facial feather pattern is as unique as a fingerprint.<sup class="reference" id="bkmrk-%5B4%5D">[\[4\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macaw#cite_note-Macaw_facial_fingerprint-4)</sup>

The largest macaws are the [hyacinth](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyacinth_macaw "Hyacinth macaw"), [Buffon's (great green)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_green_macaw "Great green macaw") and [green-winged](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red-and-green_macaw "Red-and-green macaw") macaws. While still relatively large parrots, [mini-macaws](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mini-macaws "Mini-macaws") of the genera *Cyanopsitta*, *Orthopsittaca* and *Primolius* are significantly smaller than the members of *Anodorhynchus* and *Ara*. The smallest member of the family, the red-shouldered macaw, is no larger than some parakeets of the genus *[Aratinga](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aratinga "Aratinga")*.<sup class="reference" id="bkmrk-%5B3%5D-1">[\[3\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macaw#cite_note-Abramson-3)</sup>

Macaws, like other [parrots](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parrot "Parrot"), [toucans](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toucan "Toucan") and [woodpeckers](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woodpecker "Woodpecker"), are [zygodactyl](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zygodactyl "Zygodactyl"), having their first and fourth toes pointing backward.<sup class="reference" id="bkmrk-%5B3%5D-2">[\[3\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macaw#cite_note-Abramson-3)</sup>

## Species in taxonomic order

There are 19 species of macaws, including extinct and critically [endangered species](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Endangered_species "Endangered species").<sup class="reference" id="bkmrk-%5B5%5D">[\[5\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macaw#cite_note-zoonomen-5)</sup> In addition, there are several hypothetical extinct species that have been proposed based on very little evidence.<sup class="reference" id="bkmrk-%5B6%5D">[\[6\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macaw#cite_note-Fuller1987-6)</sup>

<figure class="mw-default-size" id="bkmrk-glaucous-macaw%C2%A0%28behi">[![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/28/Glaucous_Macaw.jpg/220px-Glaucous_Macaw.jpg)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Glaucous_Macaw.jpg)<figcaption>[Glaucous macaw](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glaucous_macaw "Glaucous macaw") (behind [hyacinth macaw](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyacinth_macaw "Hyacinth macaw")) and other macaws</figcaption></figure>- *[Anodorhynchus](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anodorhynchus "Anodorhynchus")*
    - [Glaucous macaw](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glaucous_macaw "Glaucous macaw"), *Anodorhynchus glaucus* (critically endangered or extinct)
    - [Hyacinth macaw](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyacinth_macaw "Hyacinth macaw"), *Anodorhynchus hyacinthinus*
    - Indigo macaw or [Lear's macaw](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lear%27s_macaw "Lear's macaw"), *Anodorhynchus leari*
- *Cyanopsitta*
    - Little blue macaw or [Spix's macaw](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spix%27s_macaw "Spix's macaw"), *Cyanopsitta spixii* (probably extinct in the wild)

<figure class="mw-default-size" id="bkmrk-from-l-to-r%3A%C2%A0scarlet">[![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f2/Ara_macao%2C_Ara_ararauna_and_Ara_militaris.jpg/220px-Ara_macao%2C_Ara_ararauna_and_Ara_militaris.jpg)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Ara_macao,_Ara_ararauna_and_Ara_militaris.jpg)<figcaption>From L to R: [scarlet macaw](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scarlet_macaw "Scarlet macaw"), [blue-and-yellow macaw](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue-and-yellow_macaw "Blue-and-yellow macaw"), and [military macaw](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_macaw "Military macaw")</figcaption></figure><figure class="mw-default-size mw-halign-right" id="bkmrk-blue-and-yellow-maca">[![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4b/Ara_ararauna_and_Ara_glaucogularis_-captive_in_Canada-8a.jpg/220px-Ara_ararauna_and_Ara_glaucogularis_-captive_in_Canada-8a.jpg)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Ara_ararauna_and_Ara_glaucogularis_-captive_in_Canada-8a.jpg)<figcaption>[Blue-and-yellow macaw](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue-and-yellow_macaw "Blue-and-yellow macaw") (left) and [blue-throated macaw](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue-throated_macaw "Blue-throated macaw") (right)</figcaption></figure>- *[Ara](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ara_(bird) "Ara (bird)")*
    - [Blue-and-yellow macaw](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue-and-yellow_macaw "Blue-and-yellow macaw") or blue-and-gold macaw, *Ara ararauna*
    - [Blue-throated macaw](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue-throated_macaw "Blue-throated macaw"), *Ara glaucogularis*
    - [Military macaw](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_macaw "Military macaw"), *Ara militaris*
    - [Great green macaw](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_green_macaw "Great green macaw") or Buffon's macaw, *Ara ambiguus*
    - [Scarlet macaw](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scarlet_macaw "Scarlet macaw") or Aracanga, *Ara macao*
    - [Red-and-green macaw](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red-and-green_macaw "Red-and-green macaw") or green-winged macaw, *Ara chloropterus*
    - [Red-fronted macaw](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red-fronted_macaw "Red-fronted macaw"), *Ara rubrogenys*
    - [Chestnut-fronted macaw](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chestnut-fronted_macaw "Chestnut-fronted macaw") or severe macaw, *Ara severus*
    - †[Cuban red macaw](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuban_red_macaw "Cuban red macaw"), *Ara tricolor* (extinct)
    - †[Saint Croix macaw](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Croix_macaw "Saint Croix macaw"), *Ara autochthones*<sup class="reference" id="bkmrk-%5B7%5D">[\[7\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macaw#cite_note-wetmore1937-7)</sup> (extinct)
- *Orthopsittaca*
    - [Red-bellied macaw](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red-bellied_macaw "Red-bellied macaw"), *Orthopsittaca manilatus*
- *[Primolius](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Primolius "Primolius")*
    - [Blue-headed macaw](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue-headed_macaw "Blue-headed macaw"), *Primolius couloni*
    - [Blue-winged macaw](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue-winged_macaw "Blue-winged macaw") or Illiger's macaw, *Primolius maracana*
    - [Golden-collared macaw](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden-collared_macaw "Golden-collared macaw"), *Primolius auricollis*
- *Diopsittaca*
    - [Red-shouldered macaw](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red-shouldered_macaw "Red-shouldered macaw") or Hahn's macaw, *Diopsittaca nobilis*

## Hypothetical extinct species

Several [hypothetical extinct species](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypothetical_extinct_species "Hypothetical extinct species") of macaws have been postulated based on little evidence, and they may have been subspecies, or familiar parrots that were imported onto an island and later wrongly presumed to have a separate identity.<sup class="reference" id="bkmrk-%5B6%5D-1">[\[6\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macaw#cite_note-Fuller1987-6)</sup>

- [Martinique macaw](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martinique_macaw "Martinique macaw"), *Ara martinica*, [Rothschild](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_Rothschild,_2nd_Baron_Rothschild "Walter Rothschild, 2nd Baron Rothschild") 1905
- [Lesser Antillean macaw](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lesser_Antillean_macaw "Lesser Antillean macaw"), *Ara guadeloupensis*, Clark, 1905
- [Jamaican green-and-yellow macaw](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jamaican_green-and-yellow_macaw "Jamaican green-and-yellow macaw"), *Ara erythrocephala*, Rothschild 1905
- [Jamaican red macaw](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jamaican_red_macaw "Jamaican red macaw"), *Ara gossei*, Rothschild 1905
- [Dominican green-and-yellow macaw](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dominican_green-and-yellow_macaw "Dominican green-and-yellow macaw"), *Ara atwoodi*, Clark, 1905

## Extinctions and conservation status

The majority of macaws are now endangered in the wild and a few are [extinct](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Extinction "Extinction"). The [Spix's macaw](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spix%27s_macaw "Spix's macaw") is now probably extinct in the wild. The [glaucous macaw](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glaucous_macaw "Glaucous macaw") is also probably extinct, with only two reliable records of sightings in the 20th century. The greatest problems threatening the macaw population are the rapid rate of [deforestation](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deforestation "Deforestation") and illegal trapping for the bird trade.<sup class="reference" id="bkmrk-%5B8%5D">[\[8\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macaw#cite_note-8)</sup> Prehistoric Native Americans in the American Southwest farmed macaws in establishments known as "feather factories".<sup class="reference" id="bkmrk-%5B9%5D">[\[9\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macaw#cite_note-9)</sup>

[International trade](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_trade "International trade") of all macaw species is regulated by the [Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CITES "CITES") (CITES). Some species of macaws—the scarlet macaw (*Ara macao*) as an example—are listed in the CITES Appendix I and may not be lawfully traded for commercial purposes. Other species, such as the red-shouldered macaw (*Diopsittaca nobilis*), are listed in Appendix II and may legally be traded commercially provided that certain controls are in place, including a non-detriment finding, establishment of an export quota, and issuing of export permits.

## Hybrids

Sometimes macaws are hybridized for the pet trade.

Aviculturists have reported an over-abundance of female blue-and-yellow macaws in captivity, which differs from the general rule with captive macaws and other parrots, where the males are more abundant.<sup class="noprint Inline-Template Template-Fact">\[*[<span title="This claim needs references to reliable sources. (November 2010)">citation needed</span>](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed "Wikipedia:Citation needed")*\]</sup> This would explain why the blue and gold is the most commonly hybridised macaw, and why the hybridising trend took hold among macaws. Common macaw hybrids include the harlequin (*[Ara ararauna](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue-and-yellow_macaw "Blue-and-yellow macaw")* × *[Ara chloroptera](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red-and-green_macaw "Red-and-green macaw")*), miligold macaw (*[Ara ararauna](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue-and-yellow_macaw "Blue-and-yellow macaw")* × *[Ara militaris](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_macaw "Military macaw")*)<sup class="reference" id="bkmrk-%5B10%5D">[\[10\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macaw#cite_note-10)</sup> and the [Catalina](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catalina_macaw "Catalina macaw") (known as the rainbow in Australia, *[Ara ararauna](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue-and-yellow_macaw "Blue-and-yellow macaw")* × *[Ara macao](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scarlet_macaw "Scarlet macaw")*). In addition, unusual but apparently healthy intergeneric hybrids between the hyacinth macaw and several of the larger *Ara* macaws have also occasionally been seen in captivity.<sup class="reference" id="bkmrk-%5B11%5D">[\[11\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macaw#cite_note-11)</sup> Another, much rarer, occurrence of a second-generation hybrid (F2) is the [miliquin macaw](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miliquin_macaw "Miliquin macaw") (harlequin and military macaws).<sup class="reference" id="bkmrk-%5B12%5D">[\[12\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macaw#cite_note-washpost-12)</sup>


## Diet and clay licks

Macaws eat a variety of foods including seeds, nuts, fruits, palm fruits, leaves, flowers, and stems. Safe vegetables include asparagus, beets, bell peppers, broccoli, butternut, carrots, corn on the cob, dandelion greens, collard greens, hot peppers, spinach, sweet potatoes, tomatoes and zucchini. Wild species may forage widely, over 100 km (62 mi) for some of the larger species such as *Ara araurana* (blue and yellow macaw) and *Ara ambigua* (great green macaw), in search of seasonally available foods.

Some foods eaten by macaws in certain regions in the wild are said to contain [toxic](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toxicity "Toxicity") or [caustic](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corrosive_substance "Corrosive substance") substances which they are able to digest. It has been suggested that parrots and macaws in the [Amazon Basin](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amazon_Basin "Amazon Basin") eat clay from exposed river banks to neutralize these toxins.<sup class="reference" id="bkmrk-%5B13%5D">[\[13\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macaw#cite_note-13)</sup> In the western Amazon hundreds of macaws and other parrots descend to exposed river banks to consume clay on an almost daily basis<sup class="reference" id="bkmrk-%5B14%5D">[\[14\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macaw#cite_note-14)</sup> – except on rainy days.<sup class="reference" id="bkmrk-%5B15%5D">[\[15\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macaw#cite_note-15)</sup> Donald Brightsmith, the principal investigator of [The Macaw Society](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Macaw_Society "The Macaw Society"), located at the Tambopata Research Center (TRC) in Peru, has studied the clay eating behaviour of parrots at clay licks in Peru. He and fellow investigators found that the soils macaws choose to consume at the clay licks do not have higher levels of [cation-exchange capacity](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cation-exchange_capacity "Cation-exchange capacity") (ability to absorb toxins) than that of unused areas of the clay licks<sup class="reference" id="bkmrk-%5B16%5D">[\[16\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macaw#cite_note-16)</sup> and thus the parrots could not be using the clay to neutralize ingested food toxins. Rather, the macaws and other bird and animal species prefer clays with higher levels of sodium.<sup class="reference" id="bkmrk-%5B17%5D">[\[17\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macaw#cite_note-17)</sup> Sodium is a vital element that is scarce in environments greater than 100 kilometres from the ocean.<sup class="reference" id="bkmrk-%5B18%5D">[\[18\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macaw#cite_note-18)</sup> The distribution of clay licks across South America further supports this hypothesis – as the largest and most species-rich clay licks are found on the western side of the Amazon Basin far from oceanic influences.<sup class="reference" id="bkmrk-%5B19%5D">[\[19\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macaw#cite_note-19)</sup> Salt-enriched ([NaCl](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NaCl "NaCl")) oceanic aerosols are the main source of environmental sodium near coasts and this decreases drastically farther inland.<sup class="reference" id="bkmrk-%5B20%5D">[\[20\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macaw#cite_note-Lee-20)</sup>

Clay-eating behaviour by macaws is not seen outside the western Amazon region, even though macaws in these areas consume some toxic foods such as the seeds of *Hura crepitans*, or [sandbox tree](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandbox_tree "Sandbox tree"), which have toxic sap. Species of parrot that consume more seeds, which potentially have more toxins, do not use clay licks more than species that eat a greater proportion of flowers or fruit in their diets.<sup class="reference" id="bkmrk-%5B20%5D-1">[\[20\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macaw#cite_note-Lee-20)</sup>

Studies at TRC have shown a correlation between clay-lick use and the breeding season.<sup class="reference" id="bkmrk-%5B21%5D">[\[21\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macaw#cite_note-21)</sup> Contents of nestling [crop](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crop_(anatomy) "Crop (anatomy)") samples show a high percentage of clay fed to them by their parents. Calcium for egg development – another hypothesis – does not appear to be a reason for [geophagy](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geophagy "Geophagy") during this period as peak usage is after the hatching of eggs.

Another theory is that the birds, as well as other herbivorous animals, use the clay licks as a source of [cobalamin](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cobalamin "Cobalamin"), otherwise known as vitamin B<sub>12</sub>.

## Relationship with humans

Macaws and their feathers have attracted the attention of people throughout history, most notably in [pre-Columbian](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pre-Columbian_era "Pre-Columbian era") civilizations such as the [Inca](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inca_Empire "Inca Empire"), [Wari'](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wari%E2%80%99 "Wari’"), and [Nazca](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nazca_culture "Nazca culture"). Macaw feathers were highly desired for their bright colors and acquired through hunting and trade.<sup class="reference" id="bkmrk-%5B22%5D">[\[22\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macaw#cite_note-22)</sup> Feathers were often used as adornment and were found at both ceremonial and burial sites. South American weavers have used their feathers to create a number of textiles, most notably feathered panels and [tabards](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabard "Tabard"). Due to the fragile nature of the feathers, many of these pieces have begun to deteriorate over time.<sup class="reference" id="bkmrk-%5B23%5D">[\[23\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macaw#cite_note-23)</sup>