Animal Encounters X

The Greater Flamingo

There are six different species of flamingo. The greater flamingo has the widest distribution of them all. Flamingos are found in wetland habitats; on coastal lagoons, mud flats and inland at large shallow lakes which may be very saline or highly alkaline. Flamingos stand up to 150 cm high, on long legs. They weigh around 3 kg. The head is a peculiar shape - and when feeding, the bill is placed in the water upside down. Water is sucked in through the partly-opened bill. As it is squeezed out again by the tongue, a row of spines or lamellae along the edge of the bill filter out the food particles.

"Blup! Blup! Blup! Blup!"

Flamingos are filter feeders, living off algae and tiny animals such as shrimps, molluscs and insect larvae which live in the mud at the bottom of shallow pools. In some years, the pools that they feed in are teeming with life and there is plenty of food to feed chicks with. In other years, the pools are nearly empty. As a result, flamingos do not breed every year, but when conditions are just right.

"Shoo duckie!"

Flamingos are gregarious birds, living in groups called flocks or 'stands' numbering from a few individuals to tens of thousands. Whether feeding or nesting they remain closely packed together. Pairs are monogamous - they stay together for life. They can be very noisy, having a deep goose-like 'honk'. At the beginning of the nesting season, flamingos perform mass courtship displays, where hundreds move together in a coordinated walk.

Check out those sexy bendable legs!

Flamingo feathers are tinged a wonderful rosy pink colour, due to coloured materials called carotenoids in the tiny shrimps that they feed on. If they don't eat the shrimps, their feathers turn pale. In captivity, they are fed special food that contains these natural pigments to ensure that their feathers are coloured.