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AVWhen it comes to cracking nuts, macadamia nuts are one of the hardest of them all with shells as thick as 3 millimeters. To get them open, it takes an interesting combination of force and physics for a hyacinth macaw to open them. The can bite with a pressure of about 700 psi, but it’s really the way their beaks have evolved to crack really tough palm nuts in their native range of Brazil that helps the crack shells that typically need a force of 1500-3000 psi.
In human care, nuts- especially fat rich macadamia nuts - are uncommon treats. Parrots simply do not need the energy requirements that they would if they were free ranging and nut and seed rich diets commonly cause cardiovascular disease. Even our parrots that fly miles each week don’t get many nuts. We recommend less than a nut a day for parrots, even macaws.
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