On the wrong side of the Atlantic: first record of wild Greater Flamingo Phoenicopterus roseus in Brazil and in the Americas?

Abstract

We present the first report of Greater Flamingo Phoenicopterus roseus in Brazil, an individual at Araruama, Rio de Janeiro state, in late November 2021 until at least early April 2022, and discuss hypotheses to explain its appearance so far from the species' normal distribution. We believe that it was either an escapee from a captivity or a genuine vagrant that reached Brazil due to bad weather. We also reviewed earlier reports of this species in the Americas on citizen science databases, all of which pertained either to misidentifications, a single escaped individual, or taxonomic misclassification. Given the species' ability to make long-distance movements, including over-water dispersal, we contend that the P. roseus in Brazil was the first record for South America and the first wild bird in the Americas.