5 American Flamingos spotted in Port Washington, Wisconsin

Hannah Kirby Paul A. Smith
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Here's something you don't expect to see when visiting a Wisconsin beach: several flamingos.

Five were spotted Friday at Port Washington's South Beach.

They are American Flamingos, according to the Wisconsin Society for Ornithology. It appears that three are adults and two are juveniles.

Word of the special spotting spread quickly around social media, and the beach's parking lot was overflowing with onlookers.

Earlier this month, a USA Today report said Hurricane Idalia was being credited with delivering a flamingo-palooza to the Eastern United States. They were spotted in Florida, Alabama, South and North Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee, Virginia and Texas.

A pair of American Flamingos spotted not far from Cincinnati earlier this month were "by a significant margin, the farthest north record of this species in the ABA Area and a 1st record," according to the American Birding Association, which tracks rare bird sightings.

And as of Friday, American Flamingos continued to be seen in a number of locations, "most notably," in Florida, Kentucky, Alabama and North Carolina, where a flamboyance of 16 birds remains into its third week, per ABA's website.

What we know:What are American flamingos and why were they in Wisconsin?

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