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The Scarlet Macaw is a large bird native to central America and South America. They live in cavities and holes in trees left behind by large woodpeckers. Their feathers are red at the body and head and blue at the tips of their wings. A few yellow feathers form a border between the red and blue. Their faces and the top of the upper mandible are white while the lower mandible is black. They're around 80-90 centimeters in length from head to the end of the tail and weigh around one kilogram. Their beak is short and strong enough to easily crack open nuts and seeds. Their diet consists of a wide various of seeds, nuts, flowers, leaves, nectar and fruits. They even eat plants which are highly toxic to other animals; it is assumed they counter the toxicity with soil ingested at clay licks. Macaws are highly social and intelligent birds which mate for life. They're usually in pairs or small families which can join with others into flocks of up to 50 birds, often together with other macaw or parrot species. Their breeding season varies depending on location, but is usually between October and April. During that time, they lay around one to four eggs which hatch after little under a month. The young will leave the nest after another 14 weeks and stay with their parents until the next breeding season starts. Sometimes they will stay for longer and their parents will skip the next breeding season; the young are reach sexual maturity with around four years of age.

Scarlet Macaws are threatened by habitat loss. Even though the species is protected by law in all countries in its range, illegal poaching for food and their beautiful feathers is widespread. They're also often illegally captured due to their popularity as a pet. Their population is slowly decreasing in the wild but they're still rather common as pets, so they're listed as least concern.

Macaws make excellent pets and companions if properly cared for. They require a wide variety of nuts, seeds, flowers, leaves and other fresh greens for their diet. They're very playful birds and require a lot of toys, swings and space. They need at least two hours of out-of-cage time and aren't suitable for anyone who doesn't have enough time for a highly social and intelligent pet. While they can imitate speech, they're very loud and may disturb neighbors and infants. They are known to self-mutilate and pluck their own feathers if they're in a confined space or highly unsatisfied. Macaws can become "one person birds" if not properly trained, meaning they will only be loyal and trusting with one person and will become nervous and aggressive towards other humans up to the point where they will attack and bite them, especially when they're jealous of others interacting with their favorite person or wrongfully sensing danger. In captivity they can reach ages of up to 80 years so it can become even more of a problem should they outlive their trusted person.