Like the magnetic sense, the weather sense of flamingos and other birds is an enigma. Males and females perform a spectacular courtship dance to attract a mate. Once formed, flamingo pair bonds are mostly monogamous. Interestingly, so much carotenoid is taken up by their crop milk that by the end of a breeding season parents of both sexes have lost the pink colouring from their feathers and appear almost white.
Scientists have found that the blood biochemistry of each of the six flamingo species varies, with different species seeking specific types of carotenoid. This accounts for the range of hues. Little grey baby flamingo chicks hatch atop a mud nest constructed by the adults and take up to three years to attain their full mature plumage. The flamingos become pink over time as their feathers are slowly dyed by the carotenoids in their diet. The birds have also been introduced in the Netherlands, Germany, and the US.
More than half of the bill is black-colored and the legs are gray-ish with pink-ish joints. The Chilean flamingos feed on algae and plankton in the shallow muddy water of lagoons, salt lakes, mudflats, and estuaries in its range. The lesser flamingo Phoeniconaias mino r is a flamingo species distributed throughout India and sub-Saharan Africa. The birds are the smallest among all flamingo species. They weigh between 1. The lesser flamingos are quite similar in appearance to the greater flamingos.
The more extensive black on the bill of the former is the only feature that helps distinguish these two species. The presence of the lesser flamingos near a water body indicates that the water is alkaline in nature and not fit for irrigation. This is because the birds feed on Spirulina algae which mainly grows in highly alkaline lakes.
The algae consumed by the birds is responsible for their pinkish plumage. Unlike the greater flamingos, the lesser flamingos are vulnerable to attacks by a number of predators like African fish eagles, wildcats, baboons, etc. The bird, despite its large population, is classified as near threatened as the population of this bird is falling sharply and the range is also decreasing at a rapid rate. The briny plates in their bill, called lamellae, act like tiny filters, trapping shrimp and other small water creatures for the flamingo to eat.
Their habitats include lagoons or large, shallow lakes. These water habitats tend to be salty, in fact, too salty for many other animals. Flamingoes are found across much of the world, with their location depending on species. The Chilean, Andean, and puna flamingos are found in South America.
The greater and lesser flamingos live in Africa, and the greater flamingoes can also be found in the Middle East. Flamingo courtship rituals tend to be subtle. The female will select a male, and he will closely follow behind her in shallow water. The couple will stay together as long as there is reproductive success. However, the female will find a new male if they are not successful. The female will typically lay one large, chalky egg in a nest, which is typically a mound of mud ranging from 12 to 24 inches high.
It needs to high enough to protect the egg from the elements like flooding and intense heat at ground level. The nest is usually concave and surrounded by a trench to prevent the egg from falling out and from rising waters. Both males and females build the nest by using their bills to pull mud toward their feet. A parent sits on the mound, reaches over, picks up mud, and dribbles it onto the nest.
Once hatched, a flamingo chick has gray feathers and is about the size of a tennis ball. As they stick to lakes and swamps, which are not that deep, they stomp their feet in the mud to help stir up the available food. In captivity, they have an average lifetime of 60 years. The name tells it all. The Lesser Flamingos are the smallest of all Flamingos. Compared to other species, they are about 5 million of them around the world, most than any other flamingo species. Their height can reach up to 3 ft.
These flamingos can be found in some parts of India, Asia, and sub-Saharan Africa. They interact well with other types of flamingos. Lesser Flamingo also has long legs and neck, a bent deep red bill, and light pink feathers. Adults look angry, due to their deep eye and surrounding bare facial skin.
This species is classified as Near Threatened because it appears as they are undergoing a moderately rapid decline in population. The other two being the Andean and Chilean Flaming. They inhabit the salt lakes and lagoons of the Andes mountains and can be found at altitudes of over 9, ft or 3, m. However, during the winter many relocate to warmer climates. Their size is more or less as same as the Lesser Flamingo, and they share some of the physical characteristics. Although, the Lesser Flamingo is lighter in color than the Chilean Flamingo.
With very long neck and legs, these birds have pinkish white plumage with dark pink streas at the base of their neck and on their back. They also have a distinctive downcurved bill, unlike other flamingo species. They are filter feeders, and they feed on algae. Their body is covered in pinkish-white feathers, and they have black flight feathers and bright red elongated shoulder feathers.
These flamingos can be found in the Andes Mountains to Chile to Argentina, and they do not have many predators. Due to harsh living conditions, they need to relocate quite often. Andean Flamingos can fly up to miles in a single day. Being birds that relocate during weather and according living condition changes, they travel in flocks in the thousands and can be found in an area containing high quantities of plankton and invertebrate life. They are most active during the day, sleeping at night in trees or standing on one foot in the water while they feed.
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