Hyacinth Macaw Foot

KO-139 $164.00

The macaw foot follows a zygodactyl pattern, meaning the 2nd and 3rd toes face forward and the 1st and 4th toe are turned backward. This toe pattern is common in birds that climb tree trunks or clamber through dense foliage.

The largest of the psittacine (parrots) birds, hyacinth macaws are striking birds with long, pointed tail feathers and a huge, hooked black beak and can weigh up to 3 ½ lbs (1587g) with a length of 39 inches (100cm) with half of this length in tail feathers. It has blue glossy plumage with yellow skin around the eyes and lower mandible. The upper beak seems impossibly large, deeply curved and sharply pointed (see our Hyacinth Macaw Skull). The oversized bill allows it to be one of the few creatures with the ability to crack the highly nutritious but notoriously hard palm nuts that make up a large part of its diet. The beak is also used to remodel natural tree cavities in hollow trees or to excavate tunnels in cliff faces, both of which sites are used for nesting and rearing their young. Their feet are also adapted to be highly manipulative and allow them more dexterity than most birds.

They are found in a variety of habitats in Paraguay and Bolivia including deciduous woodlands, the Cerrado, palm groves, and in the palm-Savannas of Pantanal, a lush oasis in Southern Brazil.