Eggs to the feet
Flamingos build nests on the ground using mud, small rocks and feathers. It can take up to 6 weeks to build a pair (still faster than building your typical house)! In the nest, the female will lay a white egg, which the parents take turns incubating. When they hatch, you could be forgiven for thinking the eggs have been swapped because the chicks are born grey! It can take up to several years for them to turn pink – how do you ask? It’s all in their diet. Their color comes from carotenoid pigments found in foods. It is found naturally in many plants and animals including algae and shrimp.
The long legs and partially webbed feet of flamingos make feeding time especially lively – these legs are perfectly adapted to wading into the water, and at the same time stomping on the muddy bottom, mixing food particles. They then put their beaks upside down in the water and shake their heads from side to side. Inside their banknote, it acts like a sieve. Their giant tongue sucks in water from the front and pushes it out to the sides of their beak. The broom-like discs trap and filter small organisms such as shrimp and plankton algae. Delicious!
At the zoo
Our brilliant flock (flock or group) of flamingos arrived in 2001 from Slimbridge Zoo, England, where they were hand-raised. Since then, the herd has grown! The first chicks were born in 2014 and were hand-raised by keepers until they were ready to join the larger flock. In 2018, our keepers could see the parents were displaying new behaviors – including incubating eggs at night and then deciding to nurse the chicks. Initially, all the eggs are removed and artificially incubated by the breeder, while the parent flamingo takes care of a fake egg. The real eggs are placed back under the parents just before hatching. From there, the caretakers take a back seat and let the flamingo parents raise the chicks themselves! Our Oocyte Birds team is always looking to ensure our flamingos have the best habitat and one that naturally encourages these behaviors, providing the best opportunities for ‘ our gallantry in raising their chicks.
Swim
Swimming pools are a very important aspect of a flamingo’s habitat. The floor is lined with rubber mats to protect the flamingo’s sensitive feet. It is wide and deep so flamingos can swim, wade and rest in the water. The shallow edges allow them to gather together, interact socially, and display natural behaviors such as head wagging and marching.
In the wild
Origin: Greater flamingos are the most common of the six flamingo species and can be found in Africa, India and parts of southern Europe
Habitat: lagoons, lakes, estuaries and wetlands
Conservation status: Little concern
