Ashen Shield vs Scarlet Macaw

Pluteus cinereofuscus compared with Ara macao

Key Differences

• Ashen Shield is Not Evaluated while Scarlet Macaw is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Ashen Shield	Scarlet Macaw
Kingdom	Fungi (Fungi)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Basidiomycota (Club Fungi)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Agaricomycetes (Mushrooms)	Aves (Birds)
Order	Agaricales (Gilled Mushrooms)	Psittaciformes (Parrots)
Family	Pluteaceae	Psittacidae (True Parrots)
Genus	Pluteus	Ara (Macaws)
Species	Pluteus cinereofuscus	Ara macao

Conservation Status

Ashen Shield

NE — Not Evaluated

Scarlet Macaw

LC — Least Concern

Population: ~50.0K

Trend: Decreasing ↓

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Ashen Shield	Scarlet Macaw
Diet	—	Herbivore
Average Lifespan	—	50 years
Average Length	—	85 cm
Average Weight	—	1.0 kg

Habitat & Geographic Range

Ashen Shield

Habitat

Typically found in forest floors, decomposing wood, and soil ecosystems.

Range

Distributed across Belgium, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden.

Scarlet Macaw

Habitat

Typically found in grasslands, forests, and vegetated habitats.

Range

Found across Europe (5 countries) and South America (Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela). Population trends indicate a declining trajectory in parts of its range.

Ashen Shield

Ashen shield (Pluteus cinereofuscus) is a species in the genus Pluteus. Typically found in forest floors, decomposing wood, and soil ecosystems.

Scarlet Macaw

One of the most brilliantly colored birds in the Americas, scarlet macaws display vivid red, yellow, and blue plumage with wingspans reaching 1 meter. Found in humid lowland forests from Mexico to Bolivia, they are highly intelligent, long-lived — up to 75 years — and form lifelong pair bonds. They travel long distances to clay licks where they consume mineral-rich soil to detoxify seeds. Listed as Least Concern but locally threatened by habitat loss and the pet trade.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 2 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇳🇴 Norway