Use of Wild Foods During the Rainy Season by a Reintroduced Population of Scarlet Macaws (Ara Macao Cyanoptera) in Palenque, Mexico

Abstract

The scarlet macaw ( Ara macao cyanoptera) is an endangered species in Mesoamerica due to illegal traffic, habitat loss, and hunting. In Mexico, its range has been reduced by 98%. Between April 2013 and June 2014, a population of 96 individuals of A. m. cyanoptera was reintroduced (six releasing events), in the tropical rainforests of Palenque, southeast Mexico, where this macaw had been extinct for the last 70 years. This study documents the use of wild foods and range use by the reintroduced macaws for the rainy season period June to November, 2014. The macaws used 140 trees of 31 species (19 families; 84% native species) as a source of food. Seeds and fruit accounted for 70% of their diet. The remaining 30% consisted of bark, stems, leaves, insect galls, flowers and shoots. A subset of five tree species was highly dominant in their diet (regarding number of trees used, months used and feeding records). Spatial data showed that food trees used by the macaws were dispersed over 36 ha and had a highly clumped distribution. The macaws used an additional 23ha for non-feeding activities. The dietary diversity and breadth (as indicated by Levin's Index) of the reintroduced macaws closely approaches that of wild macaws. The capacity of the reintroduced macaws to use wild foods, a very low mortality in the released population (9%), and the occurrence of nine successful nesting events, attests to a short-term success of the reintroduction. We discussed the observed patterns of use of wild foods and habitat by the reintroduced scarlet macaws in the context of the soft-release protocol used and of behavioral flexibility, accumulated social learning and a high cognitive capacity typical of psittacines, aspects essential for a successful adaptation to the wild.