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Phoenixes are immortal and they have the ability to lay eggs and have children. Logically one would assume that they would be able to find phoenixes everywhere, however in the entire 7 years of Harry's life we only see two (Fawkes and Sparky*). Finally, they are able to survive a full killing curse by rebirthing themselves.

Why is the Phoenix population so low?

* Sparky is the phoenix mascot of the Moutohora Macaws, a Quidditch team from New Zealand. Apart from Fawkes, Sparky is the only known domesticated phoenix. This information was revealed in Quidditch throughout the Ages.

Matrim Cauthon
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    Who is Sparky? Never heard of him. – Gallifreyan Jan 13 '17 at 17:16
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    Who the hell is Sparky? – Anthony Grist Jan 13 '17 at 17:17
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    Sparky is the phoenix mascot of the Moutohora Macaws, a Quidditch team from New Zealand. Apart from Fawkes, Sparky is the only known domesticated phoenix. – Skooba Jan 13 '17 at 17:18
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    Perhaps they're all wearing invisibility cloaks! – Paulie_D Jan 13 '17 at 17:23
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    @Skooba Why would a team literally named the Macaws have a mascot that's a phoenix? That's as dumb as a house named Ravenclaw having.... an eagle... mascot. Oh. –  Jan 13 '17 at 17:23
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    where does it say that phoenixes have the ability to lay eggs and have children? – user13267 Jan 13 '17 at 17:51
  • @user13267 http://harrypotter.wikia.com/wiki/File:Phoenix-artwork-from-Harry-Potter-and-the-Chamber-of-Secrets-Jim-Kay.jpg – Matrim Cauthon Jan 13 '17 at 17:56
  • is that information from fantastic beasts? – user13267 Jan 13 '17 at 17:59
  • @user13267 It is from the illustrated version of "Chamber of Secrets" – Matrim Cauthon Jan 13 '17 at 18:03
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    If phoenices are immortal, then they would have no evolutionary pressure to produce offspring. The real question is: Why is the phoenix population so high? – jwodder Jan 13 '17 at 18:17
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    They can survive a killing curse, but how do they fare against predators, magical or otherwise? – Tin Wizard Jan 13 '17 at 18:30
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    @Walt - Very well, thank you. – Adamant Jan 13 '17 at 18:45
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    @Terriblefan - Ravenclaw means 'black claw' not 'the claw of a raven' just so ya know. Eagles have black claws. – ThruGog Jan 14 '17 at 16:58
  • @ThruGog That does little to remove the irony of a house named "Ravenclaw" being lead by an eagle. – Matrim Cauthon Jan 14 '17 at 21:10
  • @Matrim Cauthon - It literally removes all traces of irony and explains the reason behind it. The name is about eagles, not ravens. The emblem is an eagle. It's a common misconception that it refers to ravens, but it doesn't. – ThruGog Jan 14 '17 at 21:35
  • @ThruGog I was aware, but... Animal known for being the most intelligent group among birds. Animal known for being a huge PITA and generally unpleasant (AKA the reason Franklin didn't want it to be the US's national bird). Let's take the latter as our intelligent house mascot. –  Jan 16 '17 at 17:34
  • @Terriblefan - I didn't know that eagles had any bad press! Thought they were always known as soaring above others etc. But interesting. – ThruGog Jan 16 '17 at 21:55
  • @Terriblefan Franklin also wanted the bird to be a turkey so I'm not 100% on his opinions on birds – Matrim Cauthon Jan 16 '17 at 22:16
  • @MatrimCauthon Wild turkeys are actually pretty great. Meanwhile, Franklin himself says all that needs to be said about the eagle. –  Jan 17 '17 at 00:05

1 Answers1

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We probably don't see more because they are not native to Great Britain.

It nests on mountain peaks and is found in Egypt, India, and China.

Since the story is from Harry's POV and he has never been to those places, it seems reasonable the only one we see is Fawkes.

Keep in mind as well they are very hard to domesticate

The phoenix gains a XXXX rating not because it is aggressive but because very few wizards have ever succeeded in domesticating it.

and they may be difficult to track down to begin with as

... it can disappear and reappear at will.

All quotes from Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them - Phoenix

In addition the incubation/gestation period may last several years, which might be a good reason for overall low populations to begin with.

Phoenix eggs are glossy green or blue in colour, they require no incubation but may not hatch for several years.

Phoenix artwork from Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by Jim Kay

However, the "canonicity" of this information is unknown as it comes from a secondary source.

Moreover, we do not actually know if they are truly immortal. Fantastic Beasts does not use this phrasing

The phoenix lives to an immense age as it can regenerate...

and Pottermore does not list as one the their "magical abilities"

Ability to burst into flame when their bodies begin to fail, then be reborn from the ashes. Can carry incredibly heavy loads, tears have healing properties

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Skooba
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    TL;DR: Observer bias – Gallifreyan Jan 13 '17 at 17:36
  • A very long incubation, along with phoenixes being not actually immortal would do it. – Valorum Jan 13 '17 at 18:29
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    @Valorum Good point. I checked wording in canon sources and "immortal" in not used. – Skooba Jan 13 '17 at 18:44
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    I guess it depends on what you mean by "immortal". If you mean, "can not possibly die", like a god, then that seems unlikely. If you mean "does not naturally die of old age", like a Sequoia, then it seems a good description. – T.E.D. Jan 13 '17 at 19:05
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    @T.E.D. I would expect the biologically immortal meaning. – Oriol Jan 13 '17 at 19:30
  • "when their bodies begin to fail, then be reborn" That's pretty much immortal. – Paul Draper Jan 13 '17 at 20:08
  • @PaulDraper My only hesitation is that if "immortal" was meant, it would have been said. – Skooba Jan 13 '17 at 20:47
  • @Skooba semantics, perhaps, but since it involves dying and being reborn from the ashes, and immortality involves not dying... –  Jan 13 '17 at 21:26
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    @Michael Perhaps. They may be like cats and have "nine lives"; I provided the canon information, one can interpret that how they see fit. – Skooba Jan 13 '17 at 21:52
  • Surely a phoenix could be permanently killed if they ended up an environment where they couldn't possibly survive. Like if it ended up in a vacuum or something. – Kai Jan 13 '17 at 23:30
  • Just because they are reborn from the ashes doesn't necessarily mean they're immortal. Like what the others said, what if other circumstances targeted them, excluding Avada Kedavra, like someone who eats them or others... – Invoker Jan 14 '17 at 01:50
  • It's really more of a regeneration than being immortal. – NiceOrc Jan 16 '17 at 00:26