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An American Flamingo flying low over a calm lagoon, neck and legs stretched out, with more flamingos wading in the background
Species

American Flamingo

Flamenco Americano
Phoenicopterus ruber
Family
Phoenicopteridae
Conservation status (IUCN)
Least Concern 6
In Mexico
Threatened (NOM‑059) 7
Learn moreeBird (opens in a new tab)Wikipedia (opens in a new tab)

Where and when to see the American Flamingo

Draft

Mostly in Yucatán state

It lives in shallow, salty coastal lagoons, feeding with its head upside down to filter the mud. From Cancún the nearest are around Holbox; the big flocks are at Ría Lagartos and Celestún.

Map of reports: American FlamingoYucatán Peninsula. Squares of about 10 km shaded by how many birder reports they hold, 2015–2026. Most reports near: Celestún, El Corchito Reserve, Ría Lagartos, Holbox. A blank square may only mean few birders went there.
2–45–1920–99100+reports per ~10 km squareLeaves out the records from Cancún, the Riviera Maya and Cozumel, likely park and hotel birds. The nearest wild flocks are at Holbox and Ría Lagartos.

Where it’s reported most

  1. CelestúnCelestún, Yucatán
  2. El Corchito ReserveProgreso, Yucatán
  3. Ría LagartosRío Lagartos, Yucatán
  4. HolboxLázaro Cárdenas, Quintana Roo

When

All year · most reports Aug–Jan

Most reports from August to January.

Reports relative to effort

  • January: 76%
  • February: 58%
  • March: 42%
  • April: 35%
  • May: 48%
  • June: 57%
  • July: 65%
  • August: 89%
  • September: 100%
  • October: 81%
  • November: 79%
  • December: 71%

Data: eBird and other datasets via GBIF.org (CC BY 4.0), 2015–2026 · Base map: Natural Earth

Filters small crustaceans and algae from shallow salty lagoons with its head upside down. The peninsula's flocks breed at Ría Lagartos and spread along the north coast, including the lagoon behind Holbox.

Identification
A very tall, slim wader that is bright pink all over, with a long neck, long pink legs and a pink bill with a black tip. In flight it shows black flight feathers. Immatures are paler and greyer.
Voice
Goose-like honking and cackling, which carries a long way from a large flock.

What the photo doesn’t show

Draft

Sources

  1. Ward et al.: Nutrient composition of American Flamingo crop milk (opens in a new tab)
  2. Huitzil 26(1): e685 (opens in a new tab)
  3. Revista de Biología Tropical 65(4): 1483 (opens in a new tab)
  4. Ramsar Information Sheet: Ría Lagartos (2001) (opens in a new tab)
  5. Ramsar: Ría Lagartos site designation (opens in a new tab)
  6. IUCN Red List category, via GBIF: Phoenicopterus ruber (opens in a new tab)
  7. PROFEPA: Flamenco rosado (opens in a new tab)

  8. Map and months: 7,609 records from 2015–2026 from eBird, iNaturalist, and others, via GBIF.org (CC BY 4.0), in 0.1° squares (about 10 km). eBird: doi.org/10.15468/aomfnb.

    Months: the species’ records ÷ all bird records that month, scaled to the busiest month. It allows for birding effort; it is not the chance of seeing it. A blank square: few or no reports, not necessarily absent.

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