Buffwing Macaw

Buffwing Macaw

  The Buffwing is a very pretty Macaw, with lots of greens and blues on the body and brilliant reds framing its face!

 "Lepi" is a Buffwing Macaw. This is a hybrid macaw with the parents being a a Green-winged Macaw father and a Buffon's Macaw mother. The Buffwing Macaw is a first generation macaw, meaning its parents are two species of naturally occurring macaws.The Green-winged Macaw has long been a favorite pet bird for both its beauty and its good personality. The Buffon's Macaw, highly endangered in its native habitat, has been quite scarce. But it is very good natured bird and a ready breeder in captivity. Through the efforts of aviculture it is becoming more firmly established with some birds even being re-introduced into their native habitat.

   Hybrid macaws are bred for color. Because they are a mixture of more than one type of macaw, the offspring are influenced by the traits and characteristics of both of its parents. Father's have the dominant gene, so this will generally influence the offspring's coloration and overall appearance.

   The temperament and behavior of hybrids are areas of uncertainty and are unpredictable. Having parents that are both sweet natured and affectionate, the Buffwing Macaw will be a very pretty bird and should be a good natured pet. All macaws require good socialization and consistent training to make good pets. The Buffwing's have the amiable nature and curiosity of their parentage, and can be a very affectionate and fun pets.

Scientific Name:

   The Buffwing Macaw is a first generation hybrid, a cross between: Green-winged Macaw Ara chloroptera and Buffon's Macaw Ara ambigua.

Distribution:

   ThIs is a captive bred hybrid macaw. Hybrid macaws are rarely found in the wild.

Description:

   Buffwing Macaws are a very vibrantly colored hybrid.  Both parents of the Buffwing Macaw contribute to the vivid colors of their offspring, though the father's have the dominant gene and this will influence their final appearance.

   Most often the father is a Green-winged Macaw (male Greenwings are more common than females). Some of the characteristics when sired by a Green-winged macaw will be a large bird, with the head and beak shape more typical of the Greenwing.

   With its other parent being a Buffon's Macaw, that mix gives it a lot of gorgeous green. This hybrid has a green body overall, with some reds on its forehead, along its cheeks and on its chest. It is sometimes said to resemble the coloration of a Red-headed or 'Cherry-headed' Amazon.

   Buffwing's are a full size Macaw and can learn to talk with a general vocabulary of about 15 or more words and expressions.

Size - Weight:

   A full sized macaw, they can get over 2 lbs. Lengths up to 86 cm (34 inches).

Care and feeding:

   A roomy cage is required unless the bird is to be let out for extended periods. Many birds can spend most of their time on a play pen or parrot perch. They eat a variety of seeds, nuts, fruits, and commercial pellets, as well as the same nutritional foods humans eat.

Social Behaviors:

   It is generally believed that hybrid macaws get the best attributes of the parents. In this case, the natural docile side of the Green-winged Macaw makes a good family type bird, while the Buffon's Macaw is extremely good natured and gentle. 

   They are an amiable bird that will get along with more than one person. But they are a typical macaw and can be cranky at times. To have a well rounded bird that enjoys more than one person, make sure it is well socialized with lots of folks

Sexual differences:

   No visible differences.

Potential Problems:

   Can be noisy (as can all macaws)

Availability:

   Finding these macaws for sale is generally hard as they are rare, and they are expensive. There are more and more macaw breeders however, so finding these macaws for sale becomes easier as they become more common.

Author: Clarice Brough, CAS