Facts About Flamingos
Flamingos are one of the most exotic-looking birds in the animal kingdom and every year , Flamingos flock to Navi Mumbai from Rann of Kutch , Gujrat , and countries like Iran , Iraq ,Pakistan and Israel.Chilean, Andean and puna species flamingos are found in South America ; greater and lesser flamingos live in Africa , some greater flamingos found in Middle East. The American and Caribbean flamingos is native to Mexico and northmost tip of South America
Distinctly pink and long-legged , this bird is not only the national bird of the Bahamas , But it is recognized element of pop culture. Flamingos are water wading birds generally found in lakes and mudflats. Their name comes from Portuguese and Spanish term flamingo which means "flame-colored".
At 4 t0 5 feet tall , Its hard not to notice a colony of these birds once you see them. Scientific name for flamingos is "Phoenicopterus roseus". Flamingos are not smarter than other flocking birds. They find safety in large groups and did not need to develop special intelligence. They can fly upwards of 40 mph during long-distance flights with supportive winds. Generally flamingos are noisy birds. Flamingos are not particularly dangerous as they are calm animals that can live peacefully with humans and other birds.
Flamingos are migratory Birds with wingspans of 37 to 65 inches, flamingo colonies travel at night.
At the slight weight of 1-3 kg , its no wonder they can fly long distances.
No one knows why flamingos stand on one foot . Flamingos generally pose with one foot tucked under their bodies . Though its kind of their thing , no one can confirm why they do it. One theory says that they do it to conserve body heat in cold water. Nobody know why they do it but what we do know is that they get tired of it literally. A study showed that this behavior does not cause muscle tension in their legs at all, so they can do it without any effort.
Flamingo Tongue
People used to eat flamingo tongue. However , the people of ancient Rome where known to eat flamingo tongue as delicacy.
Flamingos produce milk .well , kind of . They don't have mammary glands, but flamingos can produce certain " milk " from their upper digestive tracts. Both male and female produces crop milk to feed their chicks. The crop is mix of protein, fat , red and white blood cells.
Flamingo Habitat Facts
Beta-carotene makes them pink. Flamingos may always be associated with the color pink , but flamingo chicks are actually born grey. They only turns pink since all they eat is crustaceans and algae , which are reach in carotenoids. The pigment gives flamingoes the iconic hot pink tones. Flamingos eat upside down. When flamingos eat and drink , they used to pump water into their mouth using their tongue. They user their bill to strain out larger pieces of food and dirt.
Flamingos favorite foods include shrimp, snails, and plantlike water organisms called algae. Apart from these they eat fly larvae , and other plants and animals that live in shallow waters.
Flamingos nourish(feed) by combing through the mud with their feet and catching it in their beaks while their heads are upside-down. If you think that's weird , you should probably also know they do not breathe while feeding. Flamingos don't have teeth. Flamingos beaks and tongues are lined with lamellae , a hair like structure that filters out mud and silt from their food. Once in a while , Flamingos egg yolks are pink in color.
Flamingos yolks are white on the outside and yellowish or reddish on the inside. However in some cases , flamingo egg yolks have pinkish hue. The couple Male and female flamingos keep an egg warm before it hatches. With most birds , only mother sits on the egg. However , Flaming parenting is equal for both roles.
The parents only responsibility is feeding the chicks with milk crop until they can seize for prey with their peers. Baby flamingos (chicks) are not born with curved beaks. Flamingos chicks beaks become curved after a few months.
Well Flamingo has an Emoji as well which was approved as a part of Unicode 12.0 in 2019 and added to Emoji 12.0 in 2019