Best Trees for Parrots and Macaws in Colombia’s Caribbean Tropical Dry Forest (Northern Bolívar): Home Trees and Food Trees

In the Tropical Dry Forest (TDF) of Colombia’s Caribbean region—especially in northern Bolívar—parrots and macaws depend on trees that provide two essentials: home (places to perch, roost, and nest) and food (fruits, seeds, flowers, pods, and shoots). When someone asks, “what are the best trees for parrots and macaws?”, the most useful answer is a list organized by function, featuring species that also fit well in rural and ranching landscapes.

Below is a practical guide including common and scientific names in each case, based on what is observed in the region and the resources these birds frequently use.

1) “Home trees” (perches, roosts, and nesting potential)

“Home trees” are the most important in the long term because parrots and macaws need large, mature trees that, over time, develop cavities or other structures useful for shelter and breeding.

Orejero / Guanacaste (Enterolobium cyclocarpum)
Ceiba de leche / Jabillo (Sandbox tree) (Hura crepitans)
Palma de vino / Wine palm (Attalea butyracea)
Caracolí (Anacardium excelsum)
Caoba / Mahogany (Swietenia spp.)
Robles and Guayacanes (genus Handroanthus spp. and/or Tabebuia spp.)
Macondo (Cavanillesia platanifolia)
Guacamayo (Albizia niopoides)
Ceiba bonga / Kapok (Ceiba pentandra)
Camajorú / Camajón (Sterculia apetala)

Key recommendation: protecting large individuals of ceiba bonga (Ceiba pentandra), ceiba de leche (Hura crepitans), camajorú (Sterculia apetala), and orejero (Enterolobium cyclocarpum) is often one of the most valuable decisions for sustaining parrot populations.

2) “Food trees” (fruits, seeds, flowers, and pods)

These resources attract visits, especially during fruiting or flowering. In tropical dry forest, food availability is seasonal, so it’s best to maintain a mix of species so something is available across different months of the year.

A) Frequently eaten fruits

Papaya (Carica papaya)
Mango (Mangifera indica)
Jobo / Hog plum (Spondias mombin)
Ciruela costeña / Red mombin (Spondias purpurea)
Guava (Psidium guajava)
Mamón / Mamoncillo / Spanish lime (Melicoccus bijugatus)
Níspero and Zapote (Manilkara zapota) (if “níspero” locally refers to sapodilla)
Tamarind (Tamarindus indica)
Totumo / Calabash tree (Crescentia cujete): eaten occasionally
Rosa amarilla (Cochlospermum vitifolium)
Guásimo / West Indian elm (Guazuma ulmifolia)
Almendro de playa / Tropical almond (Terminalia catappa): they eat the seeds
Orejero / Guanacaste (Enterolobium cyclocarpum): they eat the fruit (and associated seeds)
Matarratón / Gliricidia (Gliricidia sepium): they eat flowers and also pods (and their seeds)
Higuerón / Caucho / Fig trees (Ficus spp.) (their figs/fruits are highly attractive to many birds)
Siam Cassia (Senna siamea): they eat the flowers (heavily visited when in bloom)
Guamo / Ice-cream bean (guama pods) (Inga spp.) — they produce guama pods (sweet pulp/aril) that many birds—including parrots and macaws—feed on.

3) A “star” tree because of its speed: papaya

While many tropical dry forest trees take years to produce large crops or develop nesting cavities, papaya (Carica papaya) has a major advantage: it grows very fast. Under good conditions, it can begin producing in about one year, which means a lot of food in a short time.

That’s why, in rural landscapes of northern Bolívar (farms, home gardens, live fences, and forest edges), papaya can be a key resource to attract and support parrots and macaws while long-term native trees become established and mature.

4) “Dual-purpose” trees (best one-sentence recommendations)

If you need a short list of “the best” because they work as home + food and perform well in the Caribbean dry region:

Camajorú / Camajón (Sterculia apetala)
Orejero / Guanacaste (Enterolobium cyclocarpum)
Palma de vino / Wine palm (Attalea butyracea)
Caracolí (Anacardium excelsum)
Guásimo (Guazuma ulmifolia)
Jobo / Hog plum (Spondias mombin)
Ciruela costeña / Red mombin (Spondias purpurea)
Matarratón / Gliricidia (Gliricidia sepium) (flowers/pods and strong productive value)
Almendro de playa / Tropical almond (Terminalia catappa) (seeds and availability) — note: it is not native to tropical dry forest, but it grows very fast.
Papaya (Carica papaya) (high use and rapid production)

5) Notes for ranchers (trees that help birds and the farm)

In cattle ranching systems of northern Bolívar, some species are true “win–wins”: they provide food for birds and also improve the pasture system.

Matarratón / Gliricidia (Gliricidia sepium)

Birds: eat flowers and pods (with their seeds).
Ranching: excellent for live fences, shade, managed forage use, and support for silvopastoral systems.

Guásimo (Guazuma ulmifolia)

Birds: eat the fruits.
Ranching: provides shade and is highly valued for its hardiness in dry climates.

6) The golden rule in tropical dry forest

To help parrots and macaws return—and stay—what works best is a combo:

species that guarantee fast and frequent food (for example papaya (Carica papaya), mango (Mangifera indica), jobo (Spondias mombin), ciruela (Spondias purpurea), guásimo (Guazuma ulmifolia), tamarind (Tamarindus indica)), and
species that sustain life in the long term as home trees (for example ceiba bonga (Ceiba pentandra), jabillo (Hura crepitans), camajorú (Sterculia apetala), orejero (Enterolobium cyclocarpum), palma de vino (Attalea butyracea)).

Videos: parrots and macaws feeding in the wild (Fundación Loros)

To see real examples of these species feeding in Colombia’s Caribbean region, you can visit Fundación Loros’ YouTube playlist showing parrots feeding in nature:
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEqTALE-mDdmxkskdy2C21RR9HSJaTYyl&si=SZ7zCIPbEvWlPwbw