Fuente de Piedra community joins effort to ring 600 flamingo chicks

Almost 50 volunteers, local residents, and experts gathered at dawn on Saturday, 8 August, to assist with the ringing of around 600 Greater Flamingo chicks at the Fuente de Piedra lagoon in northern Malaga.

Abundant winter and spring rainfall left substantial water levels in the wetland, creating ideal conditions for thousands of flamingos to breed. The resulting hatch has provided a significant boost to conservation efforts for the species.

The annual ringing programme takes place each summer when environmental conditions allow the nature reserve to serve as a major European breeding site. The identifying leg bands will enable researchers to track and monitor the birds' movement and life span across the continent.