By Zoo Miami
Today, the wetlands of the Southeastern United States are lush, green landscapes filled with life. These habitats support an incredible variety of wildlife and draw visitors from all around the world. Wading birds thrive here, living in freshwater, brackish and saltwater environments. If you’re lucky, you might spot a quick splash of magenta as a roseate spoonbill flies overhead or feeds in shallow water. But these wetlands didn’t always look the way they do now.
Centuries ago, Indigenous people, European colonizers and later settlers in the 18th and 19th centuries witnessed something even more striking — large, noisy flocks painted in shades of pink and bright orange. The American flamingo, also known as the Caribbean flamingo outside the United States, once lived in the wetlands of the Southeastern U.S., filling them with vibrant color and glorious sounds.
In the early 1800s, naturalists reported seeing flocks of flamingos along the southeastern U.S. coast, from Alabama to North Carolina. John James Audubon wrote in 1832 about traveling to Florida to study and paint the American flamingo, saying, “… my voyage to the Floridas was undertaken in a great measure for the purpose of studying these lovely birds in their own beautiful islands.” Back then, flamingos weren’t as rare as they are today, and it was widely known that they naturally lived in Florida.
Protecting flamingos and other wading birds
The Everglades became unsafe for flamingos in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Wading birds were hunted for their feathers, which adorned hats and accessories and pushed many species to the brink of extinction. The trade slowed in the U.S. after the Lacey Act of 1900 and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918, but the demand didn’t disappear. Interest instead shifted south to the Caribbean and Central and South America, continuing to threaten these stunning birds.
In an effort to protect flamingos and other wading birds, the U.S. government created programs to restore the wetlands, monitor populations and establish state and national parks as well as wildlife refuges. It also funded recovery programs to help protect nesting sites and control predators. These conservation efforts sparked remarkable recoveries for many wading bird species, but not for the American flamingo.
The American flamingo kept declining across its historic range well into the 1950s. By then, the population had dropped to around 20,000 birds, and nesting sites had fallen from dozens to just four. Early naturalists also reported flamingos nesting in Florida, and fossil evidence shows they lived in the state as far back as the early Pliocene, about 5 to 4.5 million years ago.
Are flamingos making a comeback?
The pan-Caribbean flamingo population has made a remarkable comeback, now topping a quarter of a million birds. Flamingos are once again returning to wetlands across much of their former range. However, their nesting options remain extremely limited — just four or five major sites. Each site faces significant challenges, from environmental stress to the risk of complete nesting failure.
Because of this, flamingos remain vulnerable to climate change, wetland and coastal development, invasive species and other pressures. Flamingos have also been returning to Florida in growing numbers and larger flocks. While many now stay year-round, there’s still no clear evidence they’re nesting anywhere on the peninsula.
Working to raise awareness and help flamingos recover
In recent years, a renewed awareness has focused on the challenges facing the American flamingo in Florida. In 2012, staff at Zoo Miami and biologists from Everglades National Park began uncovering the bird’s history in the state and working to better understand its current status. Their efforts included satellite tracking, banding wild flamingos and investigating historical records and community science bird reports.
Additionally, groups such as Audubon Florida, the South Florida Water Management District and members of the Florida Legislature have begun to recognize the flamingo’s situation and push for its recovery. There’s even a movement to name the flamingo Florida’s official state bird, with the hope this recognition would strengthen protections for the species.
Flamingos are woven into the very fabric of Florida. They appear in business logos, on state lottery tickets, on lawn decorations and on nearly every tourism poster and guide. The hope is that the flamingo’s return could inspire responsible ecotourism or restore the simple joy of having these quirky, coral-colored creatures become a common sight in Florida once again.
