Cardboard Palm vs Scarlet Macaw

Zamia furfuracea compared with Ara macao

Key Differences

Cardboard Palm is Endangered while Scarlet Macaw is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Cardboard Palm	Scarlet Macaw
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Tracheophyta	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Cycadopsida (Cycadopsida)	Aves (Birds)
Order	Cycadales (Cycadales)	Psittaciformes (Parrots)
Family	Zamiaceae	Psittacidae (True Parrots)
Genus	Zamia	Ara (Macaws)
Species	Zamia furfuracea	Ara macao

Conservation Status

Cardboard Palm

EN — Endangered

Scarlet Macaw

LC — Least Concern

Population: ~50.0K

Trend: Decreasing ↓

Physical Characteristics

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

Habitat & Geographic Range

Cardboard Palm

Habitat

Inhabits tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests and deserts and xeric shrublands within the Afrotropic biogeographic realm.

Range

Distributed across Brazil, India, Seychelles, and United States. Currently classified as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

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.

Cardboard Palm

The Cardboard Palm (Zamia furfuracea) is a species in the genus Zamia. It is currently classified as Endangered (EN) on the IUCN Red List. Inhabits tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests and deserts and xeric shrublands within the Afrotropic biogeographic realm.

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.