Brazilian authorities are investigating a deadly virus outbreak among some of the last surviving Spix’s macaws — the rare blue parrots that inspired the 2011 animated film Rio. The species, once wiped out in the wild, was reintroduced in 2020 when a group of birds was transported from Germany to northeast Brazil.
Last week, Brazil’s conservation agency ICMBio confirmed that all 11 Spix’s macaws released into the wild had tested positive for circovirus, an incurable infection considered fatal in parrots. Another 20 macaws kept in captivity also tested positive.
The outbreak has reignited long-standing tensions between private breeders and the government over control of the species’ recovery.
ICMBio fined the Spix’s Macaw Breeding Centre 1.8 million reais (RM1.3 million), accusing it of failing to follow required biosafety protocols. As part of “Operation Blue Hope”, police seized mobile phones and computers from the facility and said the investigation could lead to charges for spreading a wildlife-threatening disease and obstructing environmental authorities.
The breeding centre had previously resisted a court order to recapture the infected wild birds.
In response, the centre disputed the government’s findings, saying only five out of 103 macaws in its care had tested positive. It also argued that tropical parrots — including Spix’s macaws — are more resistant to circovirus and denied claims of poor sanitation. The centre said it was “completely calm” about the probe.
ICMBio maintained that the testing used was the most rigorous available but admitted that interpreting results is “not simple”.
The crisis adds to years of drama surrounding attempts to save the species, plagued by disputes over ownership, accusations against private breeders, and controversial sales to collectors. The centre is affiliated with the German Association for the Conservation of Threatened Parrots (ACTP), which reportedly controls 75% of the world’s registered Spix’s macaws.
Brazil ended its partnership with ACTP in 2024 after discovering the group had sold 26 birds to a private zoo in India without government approval. Officials have repeatedly raised concerns at CITES meetings over loopholes allowing captive-bred Spix’s macaws to be sold internationally — fueling demand for one of the world’s most fragile species.
