Blue-and-yellow Macaw vs Scarlet Macaw

Ara ararauna compared with Ara macao

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Blue-and-yellow Macaw	Scarlet Macaw
Kingdom same	Animalia (hayvan)	Animalia (hayvan)
Phylum same	Chordata (Kordalılar)	Chordata (Kordalılar)
Class same	Aves (kuş)	Aves (kuş)
Order same	Psittaciformes (Papağansılar)	Psittaciformes (Papağansılar)
Family same	Psittacidae (True Parrots)	Psittacidae (True Parrots)
Genus same	Ara (Macaws)	Ara (Macaws)
Species	Ara ararauna	Ara macao

Evolutionary Relationship

Blue-and-yellow Macaw and Scarlet Macaw share a common ancestor at the Genus level: Ara. (Macaws)

Conservation Status

Blue-and-yellow Macaw

LC — Least Concern

Scarlet Macaw

LC — Least Concern

Population: ~50.0K

Trend: Decreasing ↓

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Blue-and-yellow Macaw	Scarlet Macaw
Diet	—	Herbivore
Average Lifespan	—	50 years
Average Length	—	85 cm
Average Weight	—	1.0 kg

Habitat & Geographic Range

Blue-and-yellow Macaw

Habitat

Typically found in various aerial, terrestrial, and aquatic environments.

Range

Widely distributed across Asia (Taiwan), Europe (5 countries), North America (United States), and South America (Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela).

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.

Blue-and-yellow Macaw

One of the most striking and widely kept macaw species, blue-and-yellow macaws display brilliant cobalt blue upper parts contrasting with vivid yellow underparts and green forehead. They inhabit forest, woodland, and savanna from eastern Panama through Venezuela, Brazil, and Bolivia to Peru and Ecuador. Highly intelligent, they live in pairs or small flocks, feeding on palm nuts, seeds, and fruit. Popular in aviculture for over 400 years, they can live 80+ years in captivity.

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 8 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇨🇴 Colombia 🇪🇨 Ecuador 🇫🇷 France 🇳🇱 Netherlands 🇳🇴 Norway 🇬🇧 United Kingdom 🇻🇪 Venezuela