FEATURE Tony Pittman with young Spix’s macaws at ACTP


The species was first described as long


ago as 1638, but was brought to greater attention by Johann Baptist von Spix, who lived from 1781-1826. This German biologist led an expedition to Brazil in 1817-1820, principally to the dry north- eastern Caatinga area, where he collected and brought back some 500-600 animal specimens. These included a small blue- grey macaw, which he named initially Arara hyacinthinus. He died not many


years later, possibly from a tropical disease contracted during this expedition. His assistant Johann Georg Wagler renamed the parrot Cittace spixii in 1832, in order to honour his mentor, and to differentiate the species from the much larger and different-coloured Hyacinthine Macaw. In 1854 it was placed in its own distinct genus, and renamed Cyanopsitta spixii, the title it retains to this day.


BIRD SCENE 43


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