Guacamayo Cabeciazul

Identificación

The blue-headed macaw is 41 cm (16 in) long. It has mainly green plumage (often tinged olive, esp. below) with the head, flight feathers and primary coverts blue. The uppertail has a maroon base, a narrow green center and a blue tip. The undertail and underwing are greenish-yellow similar to that of several other small macaws (e.g. red-bellied and golden-collared macaw). The medium-sized bill is pale greyish-horn with a black base (extent varies, but upper mandible in adults typically appears mainly pale). The iris is whitish with a narrow, often barely visible, maroon eye-ring. Unlike most other macaws, the facial skin and lores are dark greyish. The legs are dull pinkish. Juveniles resemble adults, but with the entire bill black, greyer legs, darker iris and the facial skin and lores white.

Taxonomía

In recent years it has often been placed in the genus Propyrrhura; however, as per ICZN rules, the species is now considered to be in the genus Primolius. Earlier, it has also been placed in the genus Ara, which, at present, is only used for some of the larger macaws.

Nombre científico

Primolius couloni

Autoridad

(Sclater, PL, 1876)

Orden

Psittaciformes

Familia

Psittacidae

Género

Primolius

Distribución y hábitat

It is found in the south-west Amazon and adjacent east Andean foothills. It prefers openings in humid forest, e.g. along rivers or clearings, but has also been observed in Moriche Palm swamps and outskirts of towns. It occurs from the lowlands up to an altitude of 1550 m (5100 ft). As several other parrots, the blue-headed macaw is known to visit clay-licks.

Migración

Resident species

Comportamiento

Little is known about its reproductive behavior in the wild, but a possible nest has been recorded in a bamboo cavity and another in a tree cavity. In captivity, the reproductive cycle appears to be roughly annual with a clutch size of 2-4 being the norm. In the wild it is typically seen in groups of 2-4 individuals, with occasional records of groups up to c. 60 individuals. Its call is higher-pitched and softer than that of most other macaws.

Conservación

Tendencia poblacional

declining