Himalayan indigo vs Scarlet Macaw

Indigofera heterantha compared with Ara macao

Key Differences

• Himalayan indigo is Not Evaluated while Scarlet Macaw is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Himalayan indigo	Scarlet Macaw
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Aves (Birds)
Order	Fabales (Legumes & Allies)	Psittaciformes (Parrots)
Family	Fabaceae	Psittacidae (True Parrots)
Genus	Indigofera	Ara (Macaws)
Species	Indigofera heterantha	Ara macao

Conservation Status

Himalayan indigo

NE — Not Evaluated

Scarlet Macaw

LC — Least Concern

Population: ~50.0K

Trend: Decreasing ↓

Physical Characteristics

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

Habitat & Geographic Range

Himalayan indigo

Habitat

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

Range

Distributed across Belgium, France, Netherlands, Sweden, and United Kingdom.

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 4 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇫🇷 France 🇳🇱 Netherlands 🇬🇧 United Kingdom