© Peter Bono

Spix's Macaw Cyanopsitta spixii

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Identification

POWERED BY MERLIN

Now declared extinct in the wild; only a few individuals survive in captivity. Medium-sized macaw with grayish head shading to deep glaucous blue in the rest of the plumage, contrasting with the black sturdy bill. Used to live in gallery or dry forests dominated by Caraíba palm trees in the caatinga of northeast Brazil, in small flocks of 4–5 individuals. The extinction of the species in the wild stemmed from deforestation and illegal trade. Voice is a short, rough “kraaaa!,” given usually in flight.

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