Candy Apple Waxy Cap vs Scarlet Macaw

Hygrocybe cuspidata compared with Ara macao

Key Differences

Candy Apple Waxy Cap is Not Evaluated while Scarlet Macaw is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Candy Apple Waxy Cap	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	Hygrophoraceae	Psittacidae (True Parrots)
Genus	Hygrocybe	Ara (Macaws)
Species	Hygrocybe cuspidata	Ara macao

Conservation Status

Candy Apple Waxy Cap

NE — Not Evaluated

Scarlet Macaw

LC — Least Concern

Population: ~50.0K

Trend: Decreasing ↓

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Candy Apple Waxy Cap	Scarlet Macaw
Diet	—	Herbivore
Average Lifespan	—	50 years
Average Length	—	85 cm
Average Weight	—	1.0 kg

Habitat & Geographic Range

Candy Apple Waxy Cap

Habitat

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

Range

Distributed across Norway and United States.

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.

Candy Apple Waxy Cap

The Candy Apple Waxy Cap (Hygrocybe cuspidata) is a species in the genus Hygrocybe. Typically found in forest floors, decomposing wood, and soil ecosystems.

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.