are seen. They are a very noisy bird making a variety of loud cracking and shrieking sounds, including a loud kraa-aak. Military macaw activity has been observed most frequently in the morning and the evening meaning they are most likely a crepuscular species. Food and feeding Military macaws will leave their roosts in flocks around dawn to forage. Their diet consists of mostly seeds but also includes fruits and leaves. They have been observed using Pseudalcantarea grandis for water and consuming latex from Plumeria rubra. They have a somewhat narrow diet meaning that they only eat a small percentage of species of plants that are available to them. They will also visit heaps of clay known as "macaw licks". These clay licks are found along riverbanks or sometimes in the interior of the Amazon rainforest. Macaws will flock to there to feed on these clay deposits, which appear to detoxify the poisons found in the seeds and vegetation of the rest of their diet. It is also thought that this clay provides the macaws with dietary salt not available in their normal diet. Breeding Pair-bonding behaviors include grooming and regurgitation and has been observed during breeding and non-breeding periods. Courtship will occur as early as March, while copulation doesn't actually take place until May and July. Breeding season is typically between March and October while incubation and hatching occurs during August and September. The reproductive season begins with nest selection around October and ends when the chicks fledge between January and March. Military macaws are cavity-nesters and will nest in natural cavities such as holes in trees or on cliffs. They nest in trees at least 15 meters tall and 90 centimeters wide. During breeding season, the male will feed the female 3-4 times a day. Distribution and habitat Military macaws typically inhabit tropical deciduous and semi-deciduous forests. They are a canopy species because they require large canopy trees of deciduous and subdeciduous forests for feeding, breeding, and nesting behavior. They also use canopy trees for protection from predators and heat. They typically live at elevations of 600 to 2600 m, higher in the mountains than most macaws ever range. However, these macaws may seasonally fly down to lowlands, where they are likely in humid forests and thorny woodlands. They will nest in the tops of trees and more often in cliff-faces over 600 ft. (200 m) above the ground.