Environment · Lake Tuz, Türkiye
Thousands of flamingo chicks hatch at Turkey's Lake Tuz after drought recovery
Updated
Are flamingos recovering at Lake Tuz?
Drone footage from 10 June 2026 showed about 5,000 young flamingos at Lake Tuz in central Türkiye, protected by their parents. In 2021 the salt lake nearly dried up and thousands of greater flamingo hatchlings died. A water project now pumps water into the nesting areas.
What happened?
Drone footage from 10 June 2026 showed about 5,000 young flamingos at Lake Tuz in central Türkiye. Their parents protected them as they learned to feed and avoid threats.
Fahri Tunç, president of the Bird’s Eye View and Ecology Association, told Turkish outlet DHA that the number was more than double the previous year’s, which was itself more than double the year before.
Why does it matter?
Lake Tuz is a salt lake on the Central Anatolian plateau and one of the world’s key flamingo breeding grounds. It was once Türkiye’s second-largest lake.
The lake has no outlet. Groundwater, two streams and spring rain feed it. In 1988 water covered 98% of the lake bed. By 2001 only 20% was covered, and in 2016 the lake bed was dry.
In 2021 high temperatures and low rainfall nearly dried the lake again. Thousands of greater flamingo hatchlings died.
What changed?
In 2022 Türkiye’s general directorate for the protection of natural assets launched a water supply project. It pumps water into the parts of the wetland where chicks nest. In 2024 no mass deaths of flamingo chicks were reported.
What the figures do not show
The chick count comes from drone footage and a conservation group’s account, not a formal census. The report does not say how many chicks survived the season.
Sources & reporting notes
We checked Good News Network's report of 20 June 2026, which draws on Turkish outlets DHA and Anadolu. The chick count comes from drone footage and a conservation group's account; it is not a formal census. The report does not say how many chicks survived the season.
What changed
- Rewrote the article from its cited source and removed process, monitoring and outcome claims the source did not support.
- Good News Network · 20 June 2026
Report of the 2026 hatching, the 2021 die-off and the water supply project, with quotes from Fahri Tunç.
Have a correction or a confirmed update? Contact our editorial team.
Common questions
- What happened to Lake Tuz's flamingos in 2021?
- High temperatures and low rainfall nearly dried the lake, and thousands of greater flamingo hatchlings died, according to Good News Network.
- What helped the flamingos return?
- In 2022 Türkiye's general directorate for the protection of natural assets launched a water supply project that pumps water into the areas where the chicks nest. No mass deaths of chicks were reported in 2024.