James's Flamingo Phoenicoparrus jamesi Scientific name definitions

The James's Flamingo, or Puna Flamingo, is the smallest flamingo in South America. It has a restricted and local distribution, and as such, it can be comparatively difficult to observe. This species and the Andean Flamingo (Phoenicoparrus andinus) are the sole members of the genus Phoenicoparrus; a genus that differs from other flamingo genera by its deep lower jaw, long filtering filaments in the maxilla, and the lack of a hind toe. The typical pink coloration and appearance of James's Flamingo, coupled with its foraging specializations, amazing courtship behaviors, and adaptations to an extreme environment, make it one of the most emblematic and distinctive birds in South America.

This species inhabits the Puna ecoregion of Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, and Peru, where it prefers shallower water and higher elevations than other flamingos (mostly at 2,300‒4,900 m). There are some exceptions to this, though, as some individuals remain year-round at Laguna Mar Chiquita in the lowlands of the province of Córdoba (Argentina) and small numbers occasionally turn up on the coasts of Chile and Peru. James's Flamingo nests at only a few locations in Bolivia, Argentina, and Chile, but it forms colonies numbering up to tens of thousands of individuals during the breeding season. The largest colony, at Laguna Colorada, Bolivia, contains more than 40,000 birds.

The first known individual of this species was captured in early 1886 near Volcán Isluga (Chile) and was described to science twice (under the same name) in the same year by different authors in Chile and England. According to the most recent surveys, its global population was estimated to be 154,000 birds in 2021. It is currently categorized as Near Threatened by the IUCN due to suspicions that it will suffer a moderately rapid population decline in the next three generations, owing mainly to habitat loss and degradation.