Lear's Macaw population increase

11-04-2002

There has been some good news concerning Lear's Macaw Anodorhynchus leari, a Critically Endangered species known to breed only at Toca Velha and Serra Branca in north-east Brazil.

Numbers of Lear's Macaws are slowly increasing, thanks to conservation efforts by many individuals and organisations, including BioBrasil, IBAMA, the local landowner, and the World Parrot Trust. This is despite continued poaching pressure - until recently, around a quarter of nests were raided each year. However, a survey in early 2001 recorded no fewer than 246 individual macaws, an increase of more than 30% compared to the previous population survey in the late 1990s when 170 birds were seen.

Furthermore, the Disney Conservation Initiative has just made a substantial donation towards the conservation of Lear's Macaws. This money will be used for ongoing habitat creation through the growing of Licuri palms, an essential food source for the birds, as well as for the protection of nest sites and continuing work compiling a detailed photographic record of each individual bird.