Fun Facts About Flamingos
Flamingos are a very interesting group of birds that are part of the Phoenicopteridae family . What all these birds have in common are their curious curved beaks, their playful appearance and their pink color, but there are many other curiosities about flamingos that are worth knowing.
Why are they called flamingos?
Apparently, among the curiosities about flamingos, the origin of its name stands out: it comes from the word flame , which refers to its reddish color, like the color of flames. In fact, its scientific name, Phoenicopterus ruber, in the case of the most common species, means nothing less than red Phoenix wings.
Where do flamingos live?
Lesser flamingos are one of the most curious species of flamingo, especially because of the places where they live: in some lakes in Tanzania, the clay nests of these flamingos are surrounded by waters with very high pH and temperature, where few animals manage to survive.
More specifically, the main area inhabited by this peculiar species is Lake Natron, a salt lake with a Martian appearance: red water, white foam and geysers. There are few animals that survive there, including the small flamingos, which consume the algae that grow there.
The curious beak of the flamingos
One of the biggest curiosities about flamingos is their beak: it inspired engineers in the manufacture of turbines, because they use the beak in reverse: it is the upper jaw, thanks to the posture they adopt when eating, that touches the water first. This makes this one of the most complex bird beak types.
From there, the tongue works like a pump that sucks turbid water into the nozzle, where it is filtered; thus, the nutrients are trapped in the protuberances present in the jaws of these curious animals, which mainly consume algae and small arthropods and fish.
This unique food makes them very dependent on water. In fact, although this has not yet been studied, flamingos seem to know when it’s raining, even hundreds of kilometers away, so they appear in newly formed lakes in very dry areas of Africa.
Color is one of the biggest curiosities about flamingos
Thanks to their diet, rich in carotenoids, these animals acquire their pink color when these pigments are deposited in their fat and feathers. However, in fact, these animals produce a carotenoid-rich oil that allows them to improve these colors: the pinker a flamingo is, the more likely it is to be successful for mating.
Mating is fundamental for flamingos: they are monogamous and only lay one egg, so their reproduction is very delicate. Flamingos make a delicate clay nest to care for their only descendant. In addition, they are among the longest-lived birds, which makes that, among the curiosities about flamingos, is the fact that they reach 70 years of age, something close to birds like parrots.
To take care of their offspring, flamingos make a big sacrifice: after the birth of the gray offspring, they will reach the color of their parents, but these will become lighter to provide the offspring with part of their carotenoids, through a oily secretion that they feed them. This is how these curious birds end up emancipating themselves while continuing to amaze the world with their beauty.
