SAVE THEM ALL: The Hyacinth Macaw, largest of all parrot species and today’s Endangered All-Star, retains a stronghold in Brazil’s Pantanal wetlands with a population of a few thousand. But this tantalizingly gorgeous bird is considered endangered overall, due to burning of forests and the pet-trade. Three other blue macaws have virtually disappeared: Arara azul pequena (Anodorhyncus glaucus) and Ararinha azul (Cyanopsitta spixii) are extinct or extinct in the wild; the Lear’s macaw, Anodorhynchus laeri, one of the rarest birds in the world, holds on with a population of a few dozen in the wild.
WWF and Conservation International support programs to save the Hyacinth Macaw. One scientist, Neiva Guedes, who created the Hyacinth Macaw Project in 1990, has carefully developed artificial nesting boxes for the birds: Specialists have recently discovered that the macaw relies on nest holes made by toucans, who are also the chief predator of their eggs. To support the hyacinth macaw and other endangered birds worldwide, never buy birds, feathers, or other wildlife products.
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