Garden sorrel vs Scarlet Macaw

Rumex acetosa compared with Ara macao

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Garden sorrel	Scarlet Macaw
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Aves (Birds)
Order	Caryophyllales (Caryophyllales)	Psittaciformes (Parrots)
Family	Polygonaceae	Psittacidae (True Parrots)
Genus	Rumex	Ara (Macaws)
Species	Rumex acetosa	Ara macao

Conservation Status

Garden sorrel

LC — Least Concern

Scarlet Macaw

LC — Least Concern

Population: ~50.0K

Trend: Decreasing ↓

Physical Characteristics

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

Habitat & Geographic Range

Garden sorrel

Habitat

Inhabits deserts and xeric shrublands within the Palearctic biogeographic realm. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (Chad), Asia (Taiwan), Europe (9 countries), North America (Canada, United States), and South America (Argentina, Brazil, Chile).

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.

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 3 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇫🇷 France 🇳🇴 Norway