Cape leadwort vs Scarlet Macaw

Plumbago auriculata compared with Ara macao

Key Differences

Cape leadwort is Not Evaluated while Scarlet Macaw is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Cape leadwort	Scarlet Macaw
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Aves (Birds)
Order	Caryophyllales (Caryophyllales)	Psittaciformes (Parrots)
Family	Plumbaginaceae	Psittacidae (True Parrots)
Genus	Plumbago	Ara (Macaws)
Species	Plumbago auriculata	Ara macao

Conservation Status

Cape leadwort

NE — Not Evaluated

Scarlet Macaw

LC — Least Concern

Population: ~50.0K

Trend: Decreasing ↓

Physical Characteristics

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

Habitat & Geographic Range

Cape leadwort

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial habitats from tropical forests to temperate regions.

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (4 countries), Asia (4 countries), Europe (6 countries), North America (Cuba, United States), Oceania and the Pacific (Australia), and South America (Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador).

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.

Cape leadwort

The Cape Leadwort (Plumbago auriculata) is a species in the genus Plumbago. Typically found in diverse terrestrial habitats from tropical forests to temperate regions.

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.