Common Jelly Spot vs Scarlet Macaw

Dacrymyces stillatus compared with Ara macao

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Common Jelly Spot	Scarlet Macaw
Kingdom	Fungi (Fungi)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Basidiomycota (Club Fungi)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Dacrymycetes (Dacrymycetes)	Aves (Birds)
Order	Dacrymycetales (Dacrymycetales)	Psittaciformes (Parrots)
Family	Dacrymycetaceae	Psittacidae (True Parrots)
Genus	Dacrymyces	Ara (Macaws)
Species	Dacrymyces stillatus	Ara macao

Conservation Status

Common Jelly Spot

LC — Least Concern

Scarlet Macaw

LC — Least Concern

Population: ~50.0K

Trend: Decreasing ↓

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Common Jelly Spot	Scarlet Macaw
Diet	—	Herbivore
Average Lifespan	—	50 years
Average Length	—	85 cm
Average Weight	—	1.0 kg

Habitat & Geographic Range

Common Jelly Spot

Habitat

Native to Europe and North America, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

Range

Found across Europe (5 countries) and North America (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.

Common Jelly Spot

<em>Dacrymyces stillatus</em>, commonly known as the common jelly spot, is a saprotrophic fungus in the family Dacrymycetaceae. It is classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, with records from five European countries and North America. The species typically grows on damp, dead, or decaying wood, particularly coniferous timber, forming small, gelatinous, orange-yellow cushions or pustules on the substrate surface. As a saprotrophic wood-decay fungus, it contributes to nutrient cycling and the decomposition of woody material in temperate forest ecosystems. The bright gelatinous fruiting bodies make it a conspicuous species when encountered on wet wood in cool, humid conditions. Diet information for this species is not available in current records. Biological traits of this species remain poorly documented in the scientific literature.

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.