Macaw Facts

Macaw Facts

Are you looking for macaw facts? There are nearly 20 species of macaw parrots, the smaller Red-Shouldered macaw measures just 12 inches, compared to the Hyacinth Macaw that can top 40 inches tall.  Blue and gold macaws are on the larger size, often nearly 36 inches in height from head to tail.  There are many facts about macaw parrots and their ability to talk, below are several macaw facts you may not know.

There are many commonly known macaw facts; macaws are brilliantly colored with vibrant feathers and plumage.  They originate from Central and South American rain forests, where their colors are suited to the canopy of the forests.  In the wild, as in captivity, macaw parrots are social creatures, with a need for attention.  Facts about macaw parrots include their amazing gripping toes that can latch onto branches when perching or latch onto an item to view and hold.

Some macaw facts are lesser known including that they need training.  Training a macaw can be a difficult task; however, the benefits vastly outweigh any possible frustration.  Macaws are large birds with wing spans over three feet in width and are often nearly three feet tall from head to tail.  Another fact about macaw parrots that is sometimes overlooked is the characteristic of aggression.  Macaws can become aggressive at sexual maturity leading to biting and other aggressive behavior. Macaws breed well in captivity, and sexual maturity often arrives around their third birthday. This is one of the lesser known macaw facts.

When it comes to talking, macaw facts include that they can produce screeches and scream over 105 dB.  They are loud birds, and typically not suitable for apartment or condo dwellers.  They are social birds that need a lot of interaction with humans.  The best place to house them is in a well traveled area of your home.  The more interaction with humans, the more likely macaw parrots will be to talk.  Talking ability does vary between individual macaws and some species of macaws have a greater natural ability to capture the human voice and larger capacities for vocabularies.

In the wild macaw parrots call, squawk and scream in order to communicate with their flock.  This is a fact about macaw parrots talking not often considered; when domesticated, humans in their household are their flock.  As such, macaw parrots will often scream and squawk to you, just as they would to their flock in the wild.

You know know the major important macaw facts.

Prior to considering the purchase of a macaw parrot, consider the above macaw facts.  Additionally, macaws are expensive birds to own as their food, pellets, housing and care is costly per year.  Over the lifespan, which can be over 50 years for some species, macaw parrots can cost as much, or more, than putting a child through college.  Macaw parrots are great intelligent and social birds that love to be a part of a family.

Cheers,

iTalk Bird Trainer

macaw facts