Lears Macaw

A Cobalt-Blue Macaw Recovered from ~150 Birds to Over 2,000

Lear's macaw — also called the indigo macaw — is a large cobalt-blue parrot endemic to a small area of the Caatinga dry scrubland in the interior of Bahia state, northeastern Brazil. It is one of the conservation movement's quieter success stories: the wild population, estimated at approximately 150 birds in the late 1980s, had recovered to over 2,000 individuals by the early 2020s through sustained habitat protection, anti-poaching enforcement, and community engagement [BirdLife International 2021; ICMBio 2024]. The IUCN downlisted the species from Critically Endangered to Endangered in 2009 reflecting this recovery, and the population has continued to grow since.

Lear's macaw is the close relative of the Spix's macaw (also profiled on NRWL) and the Hyacinth macaw — the three members of the genus Anodorhynchus, all blue, all Brazilian, all heavily affected by the international parrot trade. Lear's recovery offers a counterpoint to Spix's extinction-in-the-wild: the difference was timing and the persistence of a wild population large enough to rebuild from.

Biology and identification

Anodorhynchus leari is a large macaw, approximately 70–75 cm in length [Juniper & Parr 1998]. The plumage is a deep metallic cobalt-blue, slightly paler and greyer on the head, with a distinctive teardrop-shaped patch of bare yellow skin at the base of the lower mandible and a yellow eye-ring. It is smaller than the Hyacinth macaw (which it superficially resembles) and larger than the Spix's macaw.

The species is a dietary specialist on the nuts of the licuri palm (Syagrus coronata) — the licuri nut constitutes the overwhelming majority of its diet, and the macaw's distribution closely tracks licuri palm groves [Yamashita 1987]. This single dietary dependency is the structural fact governing Lear's conservation: protecting and restoring licuri palm stands is functionally equivalent to protecting the macaw.

Lear's macaws nest and roost colonially in burrows excavated in sandstone cliff faces in the Caatinga — a second specific habitat requirement (suitable nesting cliffs) alongside the licuri palm food dependency. Pairs are socially monogamous; breeding success is closely monitored at the principal nesting cliffs.

Habitat and range

Endemic to a very small area of the Caatinga biome in northeastern Bahia, Brazil — principally around the Raso da Catarina region and the municipalities of Canudos, Jeremoabo, and Euclides da Cunha [BirdLife International 2021]. The two principal nesting-cliff sites are at Toca Velha and Serra Branca. The total range is small enough that the entire global wild population can be (and is) counted at the communal roosting cliffs during coordinated annual censuses.

The Caatinga is a semi-arid scrub and dry-forest biome that has been heavily degraded by overgrazing (especially goats, which also browse licuri palm seedlings), conversion to agriculture, and charcoal production. The intersection of the macaw's narrow range, single food dependency, and specific nesting-substrate requirement made it acutely vulnerable — but also made targeted intervention tractable.

Conservation status

Lear's macaw is listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List (downlisted from Critically Endangered in 2009) [BirdLife International 2021]. It is on CITES Appendix I, prohibiting international commercial trade. Brazilian federal law lists it as protected; the principal nesting sites are within protected areas managed by ICMBio (the Brazilian biodiversity agency), including the Estação Ecológica Raso da Catarina and dedicated reserves.

The population recovery from ~150 (late 1980s) to 2,000+ (early 2020s) is documented through coordinated annual roost counts at the communal cliffs [ICMBio 2024].

Threats

Historical illegal trapping for the international pet trade was the principal driver of the late-20th-century decline. As one of only a handful of large blue macaw species, Lear's commanded extreme prices in the illegal collector market. CITES Appendix I and intensive on-site protection of the nesting cliffs substantially reduced (though did not entirely eliminate) trapping pressure. Continued vigilance against poaching at the nesting cliffs remains necessary.

Licuri palm habitat degradation — overgrazing by livestock (particularly goats) prevents licuri palm regeneration; agricultural conversion and charcoal production reduce palm stands. Because the macaw is a licuri specialist, palm-stand loss directly limits the population. Habitat restoration (palm planting, grazing management) is a central conservation activity.

Crop conflict — as the population recovered, Lear's macaws began feeding on corn crops in some areas, creating conflict with local farmers. Conservation programs have worked to compensate or mitigate crop damage to maintain community support for the species — a notable example of a recovery success itself creating a new management challenge.

Small range and population concentration — the entire global population occupies a small area and roosts at a few communal cliffs, making it theoretically vulnerable to a localised catastrophe (disease, extreme weather, fire). The recovery is real but the species remains geographically concentrated.

What is being done

• ICMBio (Instituto Chico Mendes de Conservação da Biodiversidade) — the Brazilian federal agency managing the protected areas containing the nesting cliffs and coordinating the annual census.
• Fundação Biodiversitas — a Brazilian conservation NGO that has been central to Lear's macaw recovery, including purchasing and protecting key habitat (the Canudos Biological Station protects a principal nesting cliff) and running licuri palm restoration.
• Parrots International and the American Bird Conservancy — international partners supporting the recovery through funding and technical support.
• Loro Parque Fundación — has supported Lear's macaw conservation and maintains a small managed-care population as a genetic-reserve safeguard.
• Community engagement and crop-conflict mitigation — programs to maintain local support for the species among Caatinga farmers, including compensation schemes and alternative-crop support.
• Licuri palm restoration — planting and grazing-management programs to expand the food base.

How readers can help

• Support Fundação Biodiversitas and Parrots International. Both are direct channels to the on-the-ground Lear's macaw recovery work in Bahia, including habitat purchase, nesting-cliff protection, and licuri palm restoration.
• Never buy macaws or any CITES Appendix I parrot. The illegal trade that nearly eliminated Lear's macaw — and that drove Spix's macaw to extinction in the wild — is sustained by collector demand. CITES Appendix I prohibits commercial international trade in Lear's, Spix's, and Hyacinth macaws.
• Support Brazilian Caatinga conservation broadly. SAVE Brasil (the BirdLife partner in Brazil), Conservation International–Brazil, and SOS Mata Atlântica work on the biome-scale conservation that benefits Lear's macaw alongside many other Caatinga endemics (including the closely-related, now-being-reintroduced Spix's macaw).
• Travel responsibly to the Caatinga. Ecotourism to view the Lear's macaw roosting cliffs (managed through Canudos and ICMBio-permitted operators) provides revenue to local communities and reinforces the economic case for protecting the species.
• Read the contrast with Spix's macaw. The two species' divergent outcomes — Lear's recovered, Spix's lost from the wild — turned on whether a viable wild population remained when intervention began. Supporting early intervention for currently-declining species is the generalizable lesson.

Last verified: 2026-05-24 Conservation status: Endangered (IUCN Red List 2021 assessment; downlisted from Critically Endangered in 2009); CITES Appendix I; population recovered from ~150 to 2,000+.

References

• BirdLife International (2021). Anodorhynchus leari. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. e.T22685521A204469855.
• ICMBio (2024). Plano de Ação Nacional para a Conservação da Arara-azul-de-Lear — annual census update. Instituto Chico Mendes de Conservação da Biodiversidade. https://www.gov.br/icmbio/
• Juniper, T., & Parr, M. (1998). Parrots: A Guide to Parrots of the World. Yale University Press.
• Yamashita, C. (1987). Field observations and comments on the Indigo Macaw (Anodorhynchus leari), a highly endangered species from northeastern Brazil. Wilson Bulletin 99(2): 280–282.