Roseate Spoonbill

Platalea ajaja

Least ConcernNear ThreatenedVulnerableEndangeredCritically Endangered

KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
PhylumChordata (Chordates)
ClassAves (Birds)
OrderPelecaniformes (Pelicans, Herons, Ibises, and Allies)
FamilyThreskiornithidae (Ibises and Spoonbills)
GenusPlatalea (Spoonbills)
SpeciesPlatalea ajaja (Roseate Spoonbill)

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

at Saguaro National Park

2 Verified sightings at Saguaro National Park From 2019 to 2026

10,366 Verified sightings across all 62 parks From 2019 to 2026

☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted during daytime hours (6am–6pm)

About the Roseate Spoonbill

The roseate spoonbill (Platalea ajaja) is a social wading bird of the ibis and spoonbill family, Threskiornithidae. It is a resident breeder in both South and North America. The roseate spoonbill's pink color is diet-derived, consisting of the carotenoid pigment canthaxanthin, like the American flamingo.

The roseate spoonbill was formally described in 1758 by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in the tenth edition of his Systema Naturae under the current binomial name Platalea ajaja. Linnaeus largely based his account on the "Aiaia" that had been described and illustrated over a century earlier by the German naturalist Georg Marcgrave in his book Historia Naturalis Brasiliae. Linnaeus specified the type locality as South America but this is now restricted to Brazil. The genus name Platalea is Latin and means "broad", referring to the distinctive shape of the bill; the specific epithet ajaja is from the name for the species in the Tupi language as reported by Marcgrave. The species is treated as monotypic: no subspecies are recognised.

The roseate spoonbill is sometimes placed in its own genus – Ajaia. A 2010 study of mitochondrial DNA of the spoonbills by Chesser and... Wikipedia →

Closest Relatives at Saguaro National Park

Eudocimus albus

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

Plegadis chihi

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

Plegadis falcinellus

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

LC Endemic

Ardea alba

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck

LC Endemic

Ardea herodias

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck

Butorides virescens

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck

Nycticorax nycticorax

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck

Egretta thula

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

Egretta tricolor

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

Bubulcus ibis

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

Pelecanus erythrorhynchos

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

Botaurus lentiginosus

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

See all 12 relatives Show fewer

Global Distribution

Where this species is recorded worldwide. Restricted to human observations from 2019 onwards — the same kind of record and the same period the probabilities on this page are built from, so collar-tracking studies, camera-trap arrays and museum specimens are excluded. Around Santa Rosa that removes 5,924 GPS fixes from a handful of tagged jaguars.

where this species is recorded (GBIF density — it tracks where observers go, not how likely a sighting is) · parks where it occurs — tap a pin for the sighting probability there

Parks Where Found

#	Park	Country	Daily sighting probability
1	Palo Verde National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	~50%
2	Ría Lagartos Biosphere Reserve	🇲🇽 Mexico	~50%
3	Celestún Biosphere Reserve	🇲🇽 Mexico	~40%
4	Big Cypress National Preserve	🇺🇸 United States	~30%
5	Ciénaga de Zapata	🇨🇺 Cuba	~30%
6	Iberá National Park	🇦🇷 Argentina	~20%
7	Parque Estadual Encontro das Águas	🇧🇷 Brazil	~20%
8	Everglades National Park	🇺🇸 United States	~20%
9	El Impenetrable National Park	🇦🇷 Argentina	~10%
10	Arrecifes de Cozumel National Park	🇲🇽 Mexico	~10%
11	Machalilla National Park	🇪🇨 Ecuador	~10%
12	Jaragua National Park	🇩🇴 Dominican Republic	~10%
13	Ostional Wildlife Refuge	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	~10%
14	Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve	🇲🇽 Mexico	~10%
15	El Palmar National Park	🇦🇷 Argentina	~10%
16	Las Baulas Marine National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	~10%
17	Amboró National Park	🇧🇴 Bolivia	<5%
18	Yasuní National Park	🇪🇨 Ecuador	<5%
19	Tambopata National Reserve	🇵🇪 Peru	<5%
20	Sierra de la Macarena National Park	🇨🇴 Colombia	<5%
21	Corcovado National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
22	Madidi National Park	🇧🇴 Bolivia	<5%
23	Carara National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
24	Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve	🇪🇨 Ecuador	<5%
25	Manu National Park	🇵🇪 Peru	<5%
26	Tortuguero National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
27	Lago de Yojoa	🇭🇳 Honduras	<5%
28	Darién National Park	🇵🇦 Panama	<5%
29	Pico Bonito National Park	🇭🇳 Honduras	<5%
30	Amacayacu National Natural Park	🇨🇴 Colombia	<5%
31	Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
32	Santa Rosa National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
33	Cerro Azul Meámbar National Park	🇭🇳 Honduras	<5%
34	Tayrona National Natural Park	🇨🇴 Colombia	<5%
35	La Amistad International Park (Panama)	🇵🇦 Panama	<5%
36	Marino Ballena National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
37	Manuel Antonio National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
38	Tijuca National Park	🇧🇷 Brazil	<5%
39	Piedras Blancas National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
40	Bastimentos Island National Marine Park	🇵🇦 Panama	<5%
41	Tenorio Volcano National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
42	Shenandoah National Park	🇺🇸 United States	<5%
43	Arenal Volcano National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
44	Noel Kempff Mercado National Park	🇧🇴 Bolivia	Insufficient data
45	Tikal National Park	🇬🇹 Guatemala	Insufficient data
46	Chagres National Park	🇵🇦 Panama	Insufficient data
47	Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data
48	Cahuita National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data
49	Death Valley National Park	🇺🇸 United States	Insufficient data
50	Saguaro National Park	🇺🇸 United States	Insufficient data
51	Emas National Park	🇧🇷 Brazil	Insufficient data
52	Cabo Blanco Absolute Nature Reserve	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data
53	Cañón del Sumidero National Park	🇲🇽 Mexico	Insufficient data
54	Anavilhanas National Park	🇧🇷 Brazil	Insufficient data
55	Serra da Canastra National Park	🇧🇷 Brazil	Insufficient data
56	Cordillera Azul National Park	🇵🇪 Peru	Insufficient data
57	Iguaçu National Park	🇧🇷 Brazil	Insufficient data
58	Calakmul Biosphere Reserve	🇲🇽 Mexico	Insufficient data
59	Montes Azules Biosphere Reserve	🇲🇽 Mexico	Insufficient data
60	Congaree National Park	🇺🇸 United States	Insufficient data
61	Iguazú National Park	🇦🇷 Argentina	Insufficient data
62	Soberanía National Park	🇵🇦 Panama	Insufficient data

← Back to Saguaro National Park

Roseate Spoonbill

About the Roseate Spoonbill

Closest Relatives at Saguaro National Park

White Ibis

White-faced Ibis

Glossy Ibis

Great Egret

Great Blue Heron

Green Heron

Black-crowned Night Heron

Snowy Egret

Tricolored Heron

Cattle Egret

American White Pelican

American Bittern

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found