Flamingo

Newsletters Close search form Open search form Enter your search term Search • Decor • • • • • • See all • Garden • • • • • • • • See all • Home Improvement • • • • • • • • • • • See all • Cleaning • • • • • • See all • Celebrations • • • • • See all • What to Buy • • • • • • • See all • News • • • • • • • • See all • About Us • • • • • • • See all There are six species of flamingo, all belonging to the Phoenicopterus genus. They are water-dwelling, tropical birds. Some are known for their red and pink feathers, while others have white or gray plumage. They have a comical profile, often seen standing on just one foot. Though often observed standing or wading, they are also capable fliers. Flamingo Trivia Flamingos are a unique bird—hard to confuse for any other type of waterfowl. Their color and size, their stance, and their association with warm tropics are some of the most significant characteristics that people have come to appreciate about them. Physical Characteristics • The word "flamingo" comes from the Spanish and Latin word "flamenco," meaning fire, referring to those birds that get fiery-colored feathers (not all do). • Pink, orange, or red feathers are caused by carotene in their food. Carotene is the same pigment that makes tomatoes red and carrots orange. A wild flamingo's diet includes shrimp, plankton, algae, and crustaceans. • Flamingo chicks are born gray or white with fluffier plumage to keep them warm. It can take up to three years to achieve mature pink...

Why subscribe? • The ultimate action-packed science and technology magazine bursting with exciting information about the universe • Subscribe today and save an extra 5% with checkout code 'LOVE5' • Engaging articles, amazing illustrations & exclusive interviews • Issues delivered straight to your door or device There are six species of flamingo, according to the Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS): greater flamingo, lesser flamingo, Chilean flamingo, Andean flamingo, James' (or puna) flamingo and American (or Caribbean) flamingo. The greater flamingo is the tallest species. It stands 3.9 to 4.7 feet (1.2 to 1.45 meters) and weighs up to 7.7 lbs. (3.5 kilograms), according to Diet Flamingos eat larva, small insects, blue-green and red algae, mollusks, crustaceans and small fish, according to Carotenoid levels in their food vary in different parts of the world, which is why American flamingos are usually bright red and orange, while lesser flamingos of the drought-plagued Lake Nakuru in central Kenya tend to be a paler pink. If a flamingo were to stop eating food containing carotenoids, its new feathers would begin growing in with a much paler shade, and its reddish feathers would eventually molt away. Molted feathers lose their pinkish hue. What a flamingo eats depends on what type of beak it has. Lesser, James' and Andean flamingos have what is called a deep-keeled bill. They eat mostly algae. Greater, Chilean and American flamingos have shallow-keeled bills, wh...

Flamingo: a type of wading bird in the family Phoenicopteridae. Kingdom: | Animalia Phylum: | Chordata Class: | Aves Order: | Phoenicopteriformes Family: | Phoenicopteridae There are six species of flamingoes. Four species are distributed throughout the Americas and two species are native to Africa, Asia, and Europe. The six species are the greater flamingo ( Phoenicopterus roseus), the Chilean flamingo ( Phoenicopterus chilensis), the lesser flamingo ( Phoeniconaias minor), the Andean flamingo ( Phoenicoparrus andinus), the puna or James’s flamingo ( Phoenicoparrus jamesi), and the American or Caribbean flamingo ( Phoenicopterus ruber). Size and Weight: The heaviest and tallest flamingo is the greater flamingo, which stands at 3.9 to 4.7 feet tall and weighs 4.6 to 9 pounds. The shortest and lightest flamingo is the lesser flamingo, which stands at 2.6 to 2.9 feet and weighs 3.3 to 4.4 pounds. Their wingspans range from 3.3 to 5 feet. Male flamingoes of all species are larger than females. Appearance: One of the most distinctive characteristics of the flamingo is its pink or reddish coloring. However, flamingoes aren’t born pink. Their coloring comes from the beta-carotene pigments in their food like shrimp or plankton. The brightness of a flamingo’s color depends on how much of these carotenoid pigments they consume. Flamingo feather coloration ranges from pale pink to crimson depending on the species. The American flamingo, or the Caribbean flamingo, is the brightest of...

A flamingo's plumage is a distinctive pink color with black flight feathers along the edges of the wings. It has a slender body and very long legs, a long, flexible neck and a small head. The flamingo's bill has a characteristic downward bend. Compared with its long legs, a flamingo's feet are relatively small. The front three toes are webbed, and the back toe is either tiny or missing altogether. Flamingos walk easily and can run when threatened. Breeding displays occur in large groups with, at times, thousands of individuals opening their wings or lifting up and turning their heads in one vast, synchronized movement. Theses group displays seem to bring all the birds of the colony to the same readiness to mate, to ensure rapid, synchronized egg laying as soon as conditions allow. These flamingos eat algae, small seeds and aquatic invertebrates such as brine, fly larvae, shrimp and mollusks. Flamingos usually feed while wading in shallows, using their feet to stir up mud on the bottom. They put their head to the surface (so that the bill is upside-down, with the tip pointing backward) and sweeps their head from side to side. By a rapid action of the tongue, they pump water in and out of the slightly opened bill. The way in which the upper and lower parts of the bill fit together, combined with the comb-like plates on the bill's edges, make it a useful tool for sieving food from water. Flamingos have no set breeding season, because breeding is highly linked to rainfall leve...

Flamingos are arguably among the most recognisable species of bird thanks to their long legs, slender necks, and striking colour. Flocks of flamingos are a sight to behold, and our work at BirdLife aims to ensure that their future is as bright as their feathers. There are six species of flamingo which inhabit lakes, mudflats, and shallow lagoons in the Americas, Africa, Asia, and Europe. Of the six species, four are of conservation concern. The Andean flamingo is the rarest and most threatened species and is considered Vulnerable by BirdLife. The Lesser flamingo, Puna flamingo, and Chilean flamingo are Near Threatened, meaning they are in danger of decline in the near future if we do not act now to protect them. Threats to their survival include water pollution, habitat loss, collisions with electrical wires, lead poisoning, egg harvesting, and disturbance from hunting and tourism. Fortunately, Mar Chiquita, the biggest saltwater lake in South America and a haven for three threatened flamingo species, is in the process of becoming Argentina’s largest national park with the help of Aves Argentinas (BirdLife Partner) and international support. Flamingos are what they eat While flamingos are famous for their pink feathers, shades can vary from white to pink to orange depending on their diet. The algae, molluscs, and crustaceans they eat contain pigments and the amount of pigment in their food determines the shade of their plumage. Young flamingos are white or grey until their...

There is more to a flamingo than its bright pink feathers. Get to know these delightfully unusual birds with 10 fun facts — some of which may surprise you! 1. Flamingo nests are made of mud. A flamingo’s nest looks like a mini mud volcano, with room for one large egg. Flamingos are monogamous, and mom and dad are team players. Both help to build the nest and incubate the egg. Flamingo chicks hatch with white-gray, downy feathers and straight bills. It takes several years for them to acquire their signature pink color and hook-shaped bills. The Smithsonian’s National Zoo has been home to flamingos since around its founding more than 130 years ago. Bird House keepers have worked to breed flamingos since the early ‘90s and have 2. Flamingos get their pink color from their food. Flamingos really are what they eat. Many plants produce natural red, yellow or orange pigments, called carotenoids. Carotenoids give carrots their orange color or turn ripe tomatoes red. They are also found in the microscopic algae that brine shrimp eat. As a flamingo dines on algae and brine shrimp, its body metabolizes the pigments — turning its feathers pink. 3. Flamingos are filter feeders and turn their heads “upside down” to eat. The term filter feeder may conjure images of baleen whales or oyster reefs, but flamingos are filter feeders too. They eat algae, small seeds, tiny crustaceans (like brine shrimp), fly larvae, and other plants and animals that live in shallow waters. When it’s time to ea...