Learn About The Flamingo

Look around the flamingo

The flamingo is distinguished by the color of its pink and crimson feathers, its long legs, and its strongly hooked beak. It cannot be confused with any other type of bird because of its distinctive shape. The American flamingo is considered a subspecies of the large flamingo, and it is the brightest; Their true colors, such as red, pink, or orange, appear on their legs, beaks, and faces.

A flamingo needs to run for a few steps to increase its speed before starting to fly. It is known about flamingos that during flight they extend their long necks forward and their long legs are equal behind them, and extend their black and red (or pink) wings. However, during flight they flap their wings very quickly. Almost continuously throughout the flight, in addition to that they usually fly together in large flocks, they follow each other closely and use a variety of formations that help them take advantage of wind currents during flight.

Flamingos are social birds that live together in groups whose members vary in size. The members of these groups range in number from a few pairs to thousands or tens of thousands at times. These birds also sometimes perform some of their own displays, to stimulate the production of hormones and for reproductive purposes. It is worth mentioning here that flamingo tongues were eaten as a rare delicacy in ancient Rome.

Scientific classification of flamingos

These birds belong to the class of birds Aves (scientific name: Aves), the order of flamingoes (scientific name: Phoenicopteriformes), and the flamingo family (scientific name: Phoenicopteridae), and the most prominent species of this bird are:

Greater flamingo (scientific name: Phoenicopterus roseus).

Chilean flamingo (scientific name: Phoenicopterus chilensis).

Pygmy flamingo (scientific name: Phoeniconaias Minor).

Andean flamingo (scientific name: Phoenicoparrus andarrinus).

James’s flamingo (scientific name: Phoenicoparrus jamesi).

Caribbean flamingo (scientific name: Phoenicopterus ruber).

Types of flamingo

The greater flamingo (Phoenicopterus roseus) is found in large colonies on the coasts of the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico, in tropical and subtropical regions of America. There are two subspecies of the greater flamingo: the Caribbean flamingo (P. ruber) and the Old World flamingo (P. ruber roseus) found in Africa and southern Europe and Asia. The Chilean flamingo (Phoenicopterus chilensis) is considered an inland species. There are also two types of flamingos that live in the high Andes of South America: the Andean flamingo (Phoenicoparrus andinus) and the James flamingo (Phoenicoparrus). jamesi), the first type has a pink stripe on its yellow legs, while the last type was thought to be extinct until a group of it was discovered in 1956 AD.

As for the lesser or dwarf flamingo (Phoeniconaias Minor), it is one of the species that inhabits the lake region of East Africa and also lives in parts of South Africa, Madagascar, and India. It is the most widespread species, in addition to being the smallest in size and darkest in color.

The reason why flamingos are pink

The reason for the color of flamingos is due to the color of the food they feed on, as many plants produce natural red, yellow, or orange pigments called carotenoids. These are the same pigments that give carrots their orange color, or turn ripe tomatoes red. These pigments are also found in the microscopic algae that brine shrimp eat; When a flamingo feeds on algae and brine shrimp, its body metabolizes these pigments, which makes its feathers pink.

Flamingo nests

Flamingos make their nests out of mud, as they look like a small mud volcano that can hold one large egg. Flamingos also marry one wife or two husbands at the same time, and both contribute to building the nest and incubating the eggs, until the eggs hatch into young flamingos who have grayish-white feathers. They have soft, straight beaks, and it takes several years for these youngsters to acquire the distinctive pink color of flamingos, and their hook-shaped beaks.

Interesting facts about the flamingo

Among the most important facts related to the flamingo are the following:

The length of an adult flamingo ranges between 1.00-1.5 m (3.3 to 4.6 feet) and its mass ranges from 3.3 to 9 pounds (1.5-4 kg).

The wingspan of flamingos ranges between 1.00-1.5 m (3.3-5) feet.

Flamingos turn their heads when eating, and they also absorb water and filter food.

Flamingos hold their breath while feeding.

During migration, a flamingo flies at speeds of up to 60 km/h (37 mph) and travels over 300 miles (480 km) to reach its new home.

The flamingo spends time ranging between 15-30% of its day cleaning its feathers, due to the spread of oil produced from special glands on it, using its beak.

Colonies are the name given to the large groups in which flamingos live. The number of flamingos in some colonies may reach one million birds.

Flamingos produce only one egg each year.

Both the mother and father keep the egg warm before it hatches, and then, a few days after hatching, both parents begin to feed their young with a milk-like substance, which is rich in fats and proteins.

A flamingo stands on one leg when it wants to rest.

The flamingo’s visible knee represents its ankle joint, while its real knee is located close to its body and cannot be seen due to the feathers.

The lifespan of flamingos ranges between 20-30 years