Boat-tailed Grackle vs Scarlet Macaw

Quiscalus major compared with Ara macao

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Boat-tailed Grackle	Scarlet Macaw
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Chordata (Chordates)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class same	Aves (Birds)	Aves (Birds)
Order	Passeriformes (Songbirds)	Psittaciformes (Parrots)
Family	Icteridae	Psittacidae (True Parrots)
Genus	Quiscalus	Ara (Macaws)
Species	Quiscalus major	Ara macao

Evolutionary Relationship

Boat-tailed Grackle and Scarlet Macaw share a common ancestor at the Class level: Aves. (Birds)

Conservation Status

Boat-tailed Grackle

LC — Least Concern

Scarlet Macaw

LC — Least Concern

Population: ~50.0K

Trend: Decreasing ↓

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Boat-tailed Grackle	Scarlet Macaw
Diet	—	Herbivore
Average Lifespan	—	50 years
Average Length	—	85 cm
Average Weight	—	1.0 kg

Habitat & Geographic Range

Boat-tailed Grackle

Habitat

Typically found in various aerial, terrestrial, and aquatic environments.

Range

Distributed across Belgium, France, Netherlands, Norway, and United Kingdom.

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.

Boat-tailed Grackle

Boat-tailed Grackle (Quiscalus major) is classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List. Widespread and abundant across its range, with stable populations and no immediate conservation concerns.

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 5 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇫🇷 France 🇳🇱 Netherlands 🇳🇴 Norway 🇬🇧 United Kingdom