Tracker to remain on ‘Peaches the flamingo’ as signs go up asking people to stay away from the bird

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Pinellas County officials put up a digital sign over the weekend near Peaches the Flamingo, warning people to keep their distance.

Peaches was rescued off of St. Pete Beach after Hurricane Idalia swept up Florida's Gulf Coast. 

After recovering at Seaside Seabird Sanctuary, Peaches was released back into the wild earlier this month. The county and wildlife rescue groups say people are getting too close to the bird, stressing it out which can then have negative effects on its health. 

READ MORE: Flamingo rescued in Pinellas County after Hurricane Idalia could provide scientists with important data

Several people also say they’re concerned for Peaches health because of what was put on it when it was released. Close to 300 people have signed a petition calling for the satellite transmitter that tracks Peaches’ location to be removed.

"She needs a voice too," Reenie Ram, a nature photographer who signed the petition, said. "She needs to be seen and heard."

Ram said they’re concerned for the bird’s health because they see it pick at the transmitter and the band on its leg.

"I think my pictures say a thousand words to you of what she's trying to tell them. She's not happy, and she is doing a little damage to her legs, and with that neoprene missing, when she bends her leg, that metal rubs against her kneecap. So, that is a concerning issue," Ram said.

Jerry Lorenz, who serves as the state director of research for Audubon Florida, and a wildlife veterinarian put the transmitter on Peaches when it was released from the sanctuary.

RELATED: Flamingo on road to recovery after being found off St. Pete Beach after Hurricane Idalia

"I’m very pleased that so many people are concerned," he said. "It's great having people keep their eyes on the bird and make sure it stays healthy. They're sending a lot of pictures, obviously, and we're looking at those pictures and taking them seriously," he said. 

Lorenz said Peaches doesn’t appear to be in distress and said it’s normal for birds to pick at the bands.

"I kind of equate that with my wedding band. When I put my wedding band on more than 30 years ago, it irritated me," he said. "At first, I never wore rings, so it would itch and bother me. And now, it's only taken it off for medical procedures, and I'll still twist my ring, that kind of thing, and that’s what these birds are going to do."

Ram responded to his analogy, saying she disagreed with the comparison.

"It’s completely different," Ram said. "He can take his wedding band off. She cannot take this device off. But our whole point of this matter is really more about Peaches as an individual flamingo, not as a whole, that she is right now going at her brace or device, and she's been pulling the neoprene apart," she said. 

RELATED: Flamingos spotted on various Pinellas County beaches following Hurricane Idalia

Lorenz said the type of transmitter on Peaches weighs less than two percent of the bird’s body weight. He said it’s like carrying around a stick of butter. Lorenz added that the transmitter type has been put on several other birds before. 

"All the data bears out that this is a good way to understand where these birds are going, and that gives us the concept of where they're feeding, where they need to live," Lorenz said. "And then we can protect that habitat, which is our goal here is to understand better what habitats flamingos are using in the state of Florida so that then we can either restore their habitat, repair them, or even protect them."

Seaside Seabird Sanctuary’s hospital director said the hospital sends a volunteer out daily to assess Peaches. 

"While we did receive some images of them pecking at the bands and the transmitter, most of the observations made by our team and through other videos and photos shared show that they are displaying all of their natural behaviors including eating, foraging, flying, and bathing," Seaside Seabird Sanctuary said in a statement. 

"We consulted the experts who placed the equipment and shared many of the images and our observations with them, and we all agree that the equipment is not causing undue stress or suffering," the statement continued.

Ram said she has gone out to see Peaches several times and said the bird appears bothered by the transmitter.

"I think it's concerning that she's that much agitated by this device, and she might want it off. She may not be a willing participant in this situation, but she may not be a good participant in it," she said. "And, you know, I think that's what the scientists need to see."

Ram said she’d like to see an independent veterinarian come see Peaches. 

Kim Huckari, a sports photographer who picked up nature photography during the pandemic, frequently takes pictures of Peaches. She said she saw the petition as well. 

"I have seen Peaches foraging, flying, plenty of times flying, living what I would call a pretty normal flamingo life," Huckari said. "Yes, when he preens he will go down and sometimes preen around where the tracker is," she said.

Huckari said she looked up the history and research regarding the tracking of birds using transmitters. She said she feels that the data showed invaluable information and knowledge about the birds. 

"I feel that the knowledge and the hopes of having flamingos now reintroduced back into Florida, providing that they’ll stay, is something that we need to consider and at least be open-minded to, and at any time the flamingo is displaying some sort of behavior that is indicative otherwise, I’m sure that there are people who are also monitoring the bird that will step in and do the right thing," Huckari said. 

Lorenz and Seaside Seabird Sanctuary added that while Peaches appears healthy to them and doesn’t need the transmitter removed, recapturing Peaches to remove it could hurt the bird, cause stress and even permanent injuries. 

Regarding the digital sign put up by the county telling people to keep their distance from Peaches, Phoebe Lorusso with Birds in Helping Hands said they’re asking people to stay at least 100 to 200 feet away from the flamingo. She said stress from people getting too close to it can cause weight loss, exhaustion, and Peaches could fly away and leave the area.

"We love that people are excited about the flamingos," Lorusso said. "We, of course, love when people get excited about wildlife. It’s really important for people to co-exist in a healthy way with wildlife, so we’d love for everyone to visit the flamingos while we have them, but of course, respect wildlife and notice that if we do stress them out they will leave, and we can’t enjoy them anymore," she said.

Lorusso said she saw hundreds of people visit Peaches on Saturday alone.