Are there flamingos in Puerto Rico?

A species Puerto Rico lost

SOPI's 2006 catalog marks the flamingo as Extirpated: flamingos once lived in Puerto Rico, but the local population disappeared. Local birders' accounts attribute that loss to hunting in the early twentieth century, and popular tradition explains the name of Flamenco Beach on Culebra by the flamingos that once used its lagoon.

Today this atlas treats it as a native species of accidental occurrence. The 2004–2009 Breeding Bird Atlas does not include it among its 130 species, so there is no modern evidence of nesting. In other words, the flamingo is part of Puerto Rico's memory and place names, but not part of the set of birds you can expect to see.

Where visiting flamingos come from

The American Flamingo nests in Cuba, mainly around Cayo Coco and the Zapata Swamp, on Great Inagua, on the Yucatán Peninsula, along coastal Venezuela, and in the Galápagos, with smaller groups in the Bahamas, Turks and Caicos, Hispaniola, and the ABC Islands. For Puerto Rico and the Lesser Antilles, the species is an infrequent visitor.

That means a flamingo in Puerto Rico is usually a single bird, not a flock. Local accounts note that visits tend to concentrate in the southwest, with its wetlands and salt flats. Audubon also warns that many flamingos outside their range are considered escapees from zoos or collections, something always worth weighing when a record is evaluated.

The flamingo of Camuy

On January 23, 2009, a flamingo arrived in Camuy on the north coast and settled at the Los Amadores pond. During dry periods it moved to another nearby pond known as Yeguada. In March 2011 it was still there, two years and two months later, and residents named it the Flamingo of Camuy. Later community accounts followed it for more than a decade.

The case stood out for two reasons: flamingos are highly social and live in groups of hundreds, and the north coast is not where they usually appear. It is a good example of how a single individual can become famous without meaning that the species has returned to Puerto Rico as a population.

How to recognize a flamingo and avoid confusion

The American Flamingo is 3 feet 11 inches to 4 feet 9 inches long, with an extremely long neck and legs. Adults are pink, in shades from whitish to scarlet; the bill bends downward and is usually tricolored, whitish at the base, pink in the middle, and black at the tip. Juveniles are grayish. It feeds by filtering water with its head upside down.

The Roseate Spoonbill, also accidental in Puerto Rico per SOPI, is pink but shorter, 2 feet 4 inches to 2 feet 10 inches, with a flat spatula-shaped bill and a bare greenish head; it sweeps its bill from side to side. The Black-necked Stilt, common on salt flats, catches the eye with coral-pink legs but is small and black and white. Bill, neck, and size settle nearly every doubt.

Where to look and how to document a flamingo

If you want any chance, the salt flats and lagoons of the southwest are the habitat most similar to what the species uses. The Cabo Rojo Salt Flats, added to the federal refuge in 1999 with 1,269 acres, were the first site in the Caribbean designated by the Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve Network. Even so, the normal outcome is seeing no flamingos there.

If you do see one, photograph the whole bird, including the bill, legs, and any band or marking; note the date, time, and place, and watch whether it lets people get too close, a clue to captivity. Logging it in eBird with photos lets local reviewers evaluate it. Do not chase or flush it: a wandering bird needs to rest and feed.

Are there flamingos in Puerto Rico?

Only as rare visitors. The American Flamingo does not nest in Puerto Rico, and the Puerto Rican Ornithological Society's catalog classifies its former local population as Extirpated. Every so often a wandering individual arrives, mostly at wetlands and salt flats.

Were there flamingos in Puerto Rico in the past?

Yes. SOPI's Extirpated label means there was a local population that disappeared. Birders' accounts attribute the loss to hunting in the early twentieth century, and tradition links the name of Flamenco Beach on Culebra to these birds.

Where can I see flamingos in Puerto Rico?

There is no reliable spot. Visits have concentrated on southwestern salt flats and wetlands such as the Cabo Rojo area, although the Camuy flamingo turned up on the north coast. To see flamingos reliably you need to visit colonies such as those in Cuba or the Bahamas.

What happened to the Camuy flamingo?

It arrived at the Los Amadores pond on January 23, 2009, and was still there in March 2011, moving to the Yeguada pond in dry periods. Community accounts followed it for more than a decade, until it was no longer seen.

What pink bird is mistaken for a flamingo?

The Roseate Spoonbill, also accidental in Puerto Rico, is the main confusion. It is shorter, with a flat spatula-shaped bill and a bare greenish head, while the flamingo has a very long neck and a bent, black-tipped bill.

Why are flamingos pink?

The pink color of flamingos and spoonbills comes from their diet: it is a carotenoid pigment, canthaxanthin. Juvenile flamingos are ashy gray and gradually progress toward adult pink plumage.