![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/A-blue-and-yellow-macaw-in-Jurong-National-Park-credit-Luc-Viatour-CC-2.0-1024x596.jpg\")
A blue and yellow macaw in Jurong National Park, credit \u2013 Luc Viatour, CC 2.0.<\/p>\n A blue and yellow macaw in Jurong National Park, credit \u2013 Luc Viatour, CC 2.0.<\/p>\n
In Rio de Janeiro\u2019s largest urban park, the tumult of the city can subside to the faintest murmur among the thick Atlantic Forest ecosystem remnant.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s here that ecologists have reintroduced the blue-and-yellow macaw through a captive breeding program. It\u2019s a delight\u2014a \u201cdream come true\u201d for residents of a city where the colorful macaw is used everywhere in logos, clothing, and souvenirs, but which hasn\u2019t dwelt in the forested mountains by the famous city in 200 years.<\/p>\n
Several conservation organizations have been prioritizing the return of animals poached from Tijuca, the 10,000-acre park mentioned earlier, or driven off by deforestation in the 19th century. These include howler monkeys, the red-rumped agouti, and the yellow-footed tortoise.<\/p>\n
All these animals have brought excited visitors to the park\u2019s trails, but none have enraptured the cariocos, (people from Rio) more than the macaw, four of which have been set free into the trees.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey are so magnificent. It\u2019s no surprise that all the visitors are constantly asking how they can see them,\u201d Viviane Lasmar, director of Tijuca national park, told the Guardian<\/a>. \u201cFor me, as the head of the park, it\u2019s special. But even more so as a carioca. It\u2019s a dream come true.\u201d<\/p>\n The organization handling the release is called\u00a0Refauna,\u00a0and having released the birds for a period of 15 days earlier this year, they\u2019ve rounded them back into the aviary with plans for a possible permanent departure in September when food is plentiful.<\/p>\n