Finding the Blue-throated Macaw the hard way, part IV

Southern Caracara

After 30 minutes at the back of the motorcycle, with Mauricio as the driver, we entered a farm with several small buildings. Several palms around the farm had breeding nest boxes for the Macaws. According to Mauricio the Blue-throated Macaws are probably going to use one of the nest boxes less than 100 meters from the farm buildings this year. It seems like the Blue-throated Macaws accept the presence of humans close to their nest. We started to wait about 50 meters from the nest boxes.

Mauricio told me that the Blue-throated Macaws have to fight with the Blue-and-yellow Macaw in order to get a nest box, and normally it looses the fight because it is smaller. The Blue-throated Macaws are also normally seen close to the farms in the area, and the last breeding season two pairs used the nest boxes made by Mauricio. Last year the chicks were stolen from the nest box used by the Macaws in this area, but the other pair of Blue-throated Macaws had fledgings at another farm.
Blue-and-yellow Macaws

After a while we decided to take a walk looking for the Macaws. We entered the area were the Blue-throated Macaws had their nest last breeding season, and a Laughing Falcon had occupied the nest box the Macaws used then.

Returning to the farm we soon heard the sound of the Blue-throated Macaws and the pair could bee observed in the palms not far from the nest boxes. I took my photos at some distance, and after some 10 minutes we decided to head back to Loreto. I have now seen one of the scarcest Macaws in the world, and hopefully this pair mange to raise their chicks this breeding season!

One of the Blue-throated Macaws