American flamingo
Scientific name: Phoenicopterus ruber Linnaeus, 1758
Overview
The American flamingo is a large species of flamingo native to the West Indies, northern South America and the Yucatán Peninsula. It is closely related to the greater flamingo and Chilean flamingo, and was formerly considered conspecific with the greater flamingo, but that treatment is now widely viewed as incorrect due to a lack of evidence. It is also known as the Caribbean flamingo, although it is also present in the Galápagos Islands. It is the only flamingo that naturally inhabits North America.
From the Wikipedia article “American flamingo”, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Conservation status
Least concern on the IUCN Red List, as recorded on Wikidata, citing The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2021.3.
Size and lifespan
| Measurement | Value |
|---|---|
| Birth weight | 142 g |
| Adult weight (male) | 3.58 kg |
| Adult weight (female) | 2.53 kg |
Source: Wikidata, citing “AVIAN BODY SIZES IN RELATION TO FECUNDITY, MATING SYSTEM, DISPLAY BEHAVIOR, AND RESOURCE SHARING”, article by Terje Lislevand et al published June 2007 in Ecology.
Where it lives
The Catalogue of Life records it in: Caribbean; Middle America; North America; South America.
Common names
Also known in English as Caribbean Flamingo, Greater Flamingo.
Names in other languages (11)
- Arabic
- نحام الكاريبي
- Chinese
- 美洲紅鸛
- French
- Flamant des Caraïbes, flamant rose
- German
- Kubaflamingo
- Indonesian
- Flamingo amerika
- Japanese
- オオフラミンゴ, ベニイロフラミンゴ
- Persian
- فلامینگوی آمریکایی
- Portuguese
- flamingo, Flamingo-americano
- Russian
- Красный фламинго
- Spanish
- Flamenco americano, Flamenco del Caribe, Flamenco rojo
- Turkish
- Karayip flamingosu
Related animals
Sources
-
Catalogue of Life — scientific name, classification, common names and range.
Version 2026-09-11, CC BY 4.0.
This species in the Catalogue of Life.
Citation
Bánki, O., Roskov, Y., Döring, M., Ower, G., Hernández Robles, D. R., Plata Corredor, C. A., Stjernegaard Jeppesen, T., Örn, A., Pape, T., Hobern, D., Garnett, S., Little, H., DeWalt, R. E., Miller, J., Orrell, T., Aalbu, R., Abbott, J., Aedo, C., Aescht, E., et al. (2026). Catalogue of Life (Version 2026-09-11). Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgz5n Source database: The Integrated Taxonomic Information System.
- GBIF — species page and recorded occurrences.
- Wikidata — conservation status, measurements, names in other languages. Q208004, CC0 1.0.
- Wikipedia — overview, from the article “American flamingo”, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Photo — Paul Asman and Jill Lenoble, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons. File page.
- Range map — RI123JH, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. File page.
Last updated: 4 October 2026