Flamingos Reappear in Quintana Roo After Decades

Cancún, Mexico — After an absence of more than 25 years, a significant ecological return of a pink flamingo population has been recorded in the northern zone of Quintana Roo. A group of at least 125 individuals has been observed, an event not registered in the Manatí lagoon system since 1999. The species is now being monitored as it may be seeking new nesting sites.

Experts, including biologist Gonzalo Aldana Pech, head of the northern zone department of the Institute of Biodiversity and Protected Natural Areas (Ibanqroo) of Quintana Roo, consider this situation a key indicator of improved environmental conditions and the effectiveness of conservation efforts in the coastal corridor.

He added that the sighting confirms the system is undergoing a notable recovery, as the presence of the flamingos indicates that habitat conditions are improving, which reduces environmental pressure on these sensitive species. Furthermore, the species, which originates from Yucatán, is returning to occupy ecological niches it historically used.

Monitoring has confirmed that the flamingo population is not an isolated event, but a robust group. According to data recorded by Ibanqroo, a population of between 110 and 120 specimens has been documented in the Manatí Lagoon this year.

He explained that in the Chacmuchuc corridor and other underlying areas under the institute's jurisdiction, even larger populations have been documented, with a total of 234 specimens registered this year.

“These same flamingos have been moving in the urban wetlands of the city; this same colony is not in Manatí, it moved to one of the ponds in the Nichupté Lagoon and they move around like this in search of food every 15 to 20 days, even in spaces where there is a lot of activity due to construction work,” said the interviewee.

Although pink flamingos do not traditionally spawn in Quintana Roo, but rather in the Las Coloradas area, experts have high expectations. It is expected that, if the trend of improvement continues, flamingos will return in greater numbers in the future. There is also hope that this phenomenon will be replicated with other species, boosting the return of crustaceans and copepods, among other species of birds and plants.

“The ultimate goal of conservation is to return life and biodiversity to the coastal corridor, making the return of the flamingos the first major visible success of this process,” detailed Aldana Pech.

He said that people can help by posting information on their social networks about where flamingo sightings have been recorded in order to gather all that information on the behavior of these populations, allowing all city residents to participate in some citizen science.

This week, flamingos have been observed in a pond of the Grand Island Cancún complex.