Cozumel, Q.R. — Environmental authorities on the island of Cozumel have announced the return of the American Flamingo. The birds were seen at Punta Sur Park this week.
Juanita Alonso Marrufo who heads the Cozumel Parks and Museums Foundation (FPMC) said the birds, which were initially seen in September of 2024, left with the passing of Hurricane Milton.
“After months of absence following the passage of Hurricane Milton last year, the American flamingos have returned to Punta Sur Park where a new banding record has been carried out in Laguna Colombia,” reported Alonso Marrufo.
“The initial sighting occurred on September 14, 2024, when three juveniles were detected on the beaches near the Xtacún lagoon. However, after the impact of the hurricane in October, the flamingos migrated to other areas, disappearing from the park for several months,” she explained.
In mid-January 2025, the arrival of a small group of adult flamingos was confirmed, prompting monitoring that has shown constant growth in the population.
During a supervisory visit, Alonso Marrufo verified the presence of these birds and documented the group photographically, identifying an individual with a metal ring with the number 5,446.
She said the monitoring and conservation effort is the result of cooperation between institutions.
“Coordinated work allows us to obtain better results in the protection of our species and ecosystems. This is precisely what our Governor Mara Lezama Espinosa is promoting with the New Agreement for the Well-being and Development of Quintana Roo: joining forces to achieve a positive impact on our community and our natural environment,” she said.
This discovery was reported to the FlamencoLab project, coordinated by the Pedro and Elena AC Foundation, whose analysis determined that the specimen had been registered in 2019 and 2020, but had lost its identification tag.
A new registration was also obtained under the code HZTN, which was also sent to the entity for documentation.
The FPMC highlighted that these monitoring activities have been possible thanks to daily tours in the Protected Natural Area of Punta Sur Park, reinforcing knowledge about local fauna and contributing to the conservation of this emblematic species.
As part of the collaborative work, Jesús Benavides Andrade and Héctor González Cortés, Director and Deputy Director of the Punta Sur park, thanked the Pedro and Elena AC Foundation for its support in preserving the American flamingo in the area.
