Harlequin Macaw Parrots

As pets

Harlequin macaws inherit a jovial and friendly nature from their parents. Hand-raised birds can become a truly inseparable member of the family, even more so because of their long lifespan.

Housing

Arrange for a cage with dimensions of at least 5x5x8 feet. Place a parrot perch in there as this bird spends most of its day on it. If affordable then also put in a playpen. Let your pet out of the cage for a few hours a day.

Temperament & Personality

The word ‘harlequin’ means a joker or a jester and that is exactly what this bird is. Hand-rearing a baby harlequin and socializing it with lots of people can make it accepting of human contact. They are rather intelligent and thus need to be interacted with by its owner on a daily basis, or else boredom will set in, leading to destructive and self-mutilating behavior. They are also trainable and can be taught to do tricks, and indeed mimic human speech and other sounds that it hears.

Like all macaws, however, each harlequin will have its own personality. Some may get cranky at times, and the owners need to be very cautious about it as they have powerful beaks which are capable of inflicting painful damage.

Feeding

Provide your harlequin with a balanced diet consisting of fruits, vegetables, pellets, seeds and spray millets.

Care

Clean the cage once every two months. Replace the food and water dishes every day with fresh ones. Provide your pet with a birdbath so it can bathe itself or you can use a mist spray as well. Clipping the primary feathers is a good idea to ensure you don’t lose your harlequin through an open window. The beak and nails also need to be clip from time to time.