Anodorhynchus is a genus of large blue macaw

Macaw

Macaws are small to large, often colourful New World parrots. Of the many different Psittacidae genera, six are classified as macaws: Ara, Anodorhynchus, Cyanopsitta, Primolius, Orthopsittaca, and Diopsittaca...

s from open and semi-open habitats in central and eastern South America

South America

South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...

. Of the three species in the genus, two are endangered

Endangered species

An endangered species is a population of organisms which is at risk of becoming extinct because it is either few in numbers, or threatened by changing environmental or predation parameters...

 and one is probably already extinct. Additionally, a hypothetical extinct species has been postulated based on very little evidence. At about 100 centimetres (39.4 in) in length the Hyacinth Macaw

Hyacinth Macaw

The Hyacinth Macaw , or Hyacinthine Macaw, is a parrot native to central and eastern South America. With a length of about 100 cm it is longer than any other species of parrot...

 is the longest parrot in the world. The three species mainly feed on the nuts from a few species of palms (notably Acrocomia aculeata

Acrocomia aculeata

Acrocomia aculeata is a species of palm native to tropical regions of the Americas, from southern Mexico and the Caribbean south to Paraguay and northern Argentina. Common names include Grugru Palm, Macaúba Palm, Coyol Palm, and Macaw Palm; synonyms include A. lasiospatha, A. sclerocarpa, A. totai,...

, Attalea phalerata

Attalea (genus)

Attalea is a large genus of palms native to Mexico, the Caribbean, Central and South America. This pinnately leaved, non-spiny genus includes both small palms lacking an aboveground stem and large trees. The genus has a complicated taxonomic history, and has often been split into four or five...

, Butia yatay

Butia

Butia,also known as a Pindo Palm is a genus of palms in the family Arecaceae, native to South America in Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay and Argentina...

and Syagrus coronata

Syagrus coronata

The Licuri Palm, Syagrus coronata, is a species of palm tree that plays an important role in the diets of tropical rainforest animals...

).

Taxonomy

There are three well established species of the genus, Anodorhynchus Spix, 1824:

• Glaucous Macaw
  Glaucous Macaw
  The Glaucous Macaw, Anodorhynchus glaucus, is a large South American parrot. This macaw is critically endangered or possibly extinct. It is closely related to the Lear's Macaw A. leari and the Hyacinth Macaw A. hyacinthinus. In Guaraní, it was called guaa-obi after its...
  
  , Anodorhynchus glaucus (Vieillot, 1816) – probably extinct
• Hyacinth Macaw
  Hyacinth Macaw
  The Hyacinth Macaw , or Hyacinthine Macaw, is a parrot native to central and eastern South America. With a length of about 100 cm it is longer than any other species of parrot...
  
  , Anodorhynchus hyacinthinus (Latham, 1790)
• Lear's Macaw
  Lear's Macaw
  The Lear's Macaw , also known as the Indigo Macaw, is a rare Brazilian parrot with a highly restricted range. It is metallic blue with a faint, often barely visible, tinge of green, and a yellow patch of skin at the base of the heavy, black bill. It weighs around 950 g and is 75 cm long...
  
   or Indigo Macaw, Anodorhynchus leari Bonaparte, 1856

Besides the three recognised species, there is the Oné Couli

Oné Couli

Anodorhynchus purpurascens, is an hypothetical extinct species of parrot. Its native name was Oné Couli. It was described by Rothschild and featured in his book, Extinct Birds published in 1907, but there is very little evidence to support it as separate species...

, Anodorhynchus purpurascens, which was described by Rothschild

Walter Rothschild, 2nd Baron Rothschild

Lionel Walter Rothschild, 2nd Baron Rothschild, Baron de Rothschild FRS , a scion of the Rothschild family, was a British banker, politician, and zoologist.-Biography:...

 and featured in his book, Extinct Birds

Extinct Birds (Rothschild book)

Extinct Birds is a book by Walter Rothschild which covers globally extinct and rare birds as well...

published in 1907, but there is very little evidence to support it as separate species and it should be regarded as a hypothetical extinct species

Hypothetical extinct species

Several extinct species have been postulated, but owing to a lack of evidence they can only be regarded as hypothetical extinct species. They have caused confusion, as they may have been a separate species, a subspecies, or an introduced species.-Parrots:...

. In the absence of a specimen, Rothschild scientifically described and named it as a separate species based on the evidence that violet macaws were said to have inhabited the island of Guadeloupe

Guadeloupe

Guadeloupe is an archipelago located in the Leeward Islands, in the Lesser Antilles, with a land area of 1,628 square kilometres and a population of 400,000. It is the first overseas region of France, consisting of a single overseas department. As with the other overseas departments, Guadeloupe...

; however, they were probably Hyacinth Macaws imported from the mainland of South America.