“[He] found a new family.”
Published on Aug 14, 2026 at 2:10 PM
For the past several years, a remarkable display of interspecies friendship between birds has been playing out on the shores of Lake Arenal in Costa Rica. It’s apparently a friendship born of heartache and loss.
According to Ronald Zuñiga Zuñiga, who works on the lake, about four years ago, a local macaw lost his mate in a tragic accident. Because macaws typically mate for life, the accident ended what might otherwise have been a relationship that would have lasted decades.
“I have a friend who saw it happen,” Zuñiga told The Dodo. “[His mate] was hit by a car.”
That’s when the macaw’s behavior changed.
“From then on, he became friends with vultures,” Zuñiga said.
Footage began to emerge of the colorful bird with feathered companions of a far more somber hue:
“He’s been hanging out with vultures for about three years now,” Zuñiga said.
Flocks of macaws aren’t an uncommon sight around Lake Arenal, but this macaw has apparently found companionship in birds of another feather. Even his diet, which would typically consist of fruits, seeds and nuts, appears to have adapted to that of his new flock. He’s even been filmed tussling for his portion of what appears to be a dead fish.
Though the motivations behind the macaw’s unlikely friendship with vultures on Lake Arenal don’t appear to have been the subject of scientific study, residents in the area seem to understand it well.
“[He] found a new family,” one local remarked.
For Zuñiga, who has witnessed the macaw and vultures interacting firsthand, their unlikely bond speaks to how social animals can find companionship after loss.
“It’s a sad story,” Zuñiga said. “But it’s also a good one, because he looks happy with his new friends