VENICE — Nearly 24,000 flamingos wintered in the Venetian Lagoon last year, setting a record for the highest count ever documented in the area. The number represents an increase of 8,000 birds from the previous year. "That position the Venetian Lagoon as one of the most important wintering spots in its entire habitat range," said ornithologist Alessandro Sartori.

Flamingos, called “fenicotteri” in Italian, began appearing in the Venetian Lagoon in the early 2000s, initially congregating in fishing valleys and mudflats at the lagoon’s farthest edges. More than 90% of last year’s count was concentrated in the northern lagoon, which contains extensive natural salt marshes. Historically, the lagoon was nearly half salt marsh—called “barene” in the local Venetian dialect—but today only about 7% remains, half of which has been reconstructed.

Restoration efforts are now expanding into the southern lagoon, where severe wetland erosion has occurred due to natural processes and dredging for shipping channels since the 1960s. A salt marsh reconstruction project is underway there as part of the European Union’s 23.6 million euro WaterLANDS initiative, led locally by the nonprofit We Are Here Venice. "The wetlands reconstruction project is specifically to show that it’s possible to address this trend and change the course of history," said Jane da Mosto, executive director of We Are Here Venice. "And since then, there’s been much more widespread erosion and loss of sediments from the lagoon to the point that Venice is now on a trajectory to becoming a marine bay," she said.

Over the past three years, flamingo numbers in the southern lagoon have grown from just a few individuals to 300 or 400 during certain periods. Signs of their presence—including pink feathers—have been found near active restoration sites. Sartori believes the reconstructed marshes are drawing the birds southward and hopes they will eventually nest there. "The hope is that they can find — as they have found in other parts of the Mediterranean — right here on these barene, places where they can nest," he said.

Environmentalists consider the flamingos’ growing presence a sign of the lagoon’s ecological health. However, observing them requires effort: they inhabit shallow, remote areas, are easily disturbed, and rarely appear in Venice’s historic center. Sartori emphasized the need for respectful observation: "Obviously this should always be done with respect for the animals, keeping a safe distance and not interfering with their daily lives."