Flamingos are one of the most exotic-looking birds in the animal kingdom.
Distinctly pink and long-legged, this bird is not only the national bird of the Bahamas,
but it is a recognized element of pop culture.
Flamingos are water wading birds typically found in lakes and mudflats.
Their name comes from the Portuguese or Spanish term flamengo, which means “flame-colored.”
At 4 to 5 feet tall, it’s hard not to notice a colony of these birds once you see them.
Flamingos are migratory birds.
With wingspans of 37 to 65 inches, flamingo colonies travel at night.
At the slight weight of 1-3 kg, it’s no wonder they can fly long distances.
However, there’s more to them than what meets the eye.
Watch on for the answers to such a questionable animal.
No one knows why flamingos stand on one foot.
Flamingos usually pose with one foot tucked under their bodies.
Though it’s 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 may know why they do it,
but what we do know is that they never get tired of it - literally.
A study showed that this behavior does not cause muscle strain in their legs at all,
so they can do it without any effort.
People used to eat flamingo tongue.
You’ve probably never looked at a flamingo and thought, “Mmm, dinner.”
However, the people of Ancient Rome were known to eat flamingo tongues as a delicacy.
Flamingos produce milk. Well, kind of.
No, they don’t have mammary glands,
but flamingos can produce a certain “milk” from their upper digestive tracts.
Both male and female flamingos produce crop milk to feed their chicks.
The crop is a mix of protein, fat, red and white blood cells.
Beta-carotene makes them pink.
Flamingos may always be associated with the color pink, but flamingo chicks are actually born grey.
They only turn pink since all they eat is crustaceans and algae, which are rich in carotenoids.
The pigment gives flamingos the iconic hot pink tones.
Flamingos eat upside-down.
The flamingos’ downwards-curved bill is specially designed to filter food from mud and water.
Flamingos 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 don’t breathe while feeding. No biggie.
Flamingos don’t have teeth.
Flamingo beaks and tongues are lined with lamellae,
a hair-like structure that filters out mud and silt from their food.
Flamingo egg yolks are pink, sometimes.
Contrary to what you may think, flamingo eggs are similar to chicken eggs:
white on the outside and yellowish or reddish on the inside.
However, in some cases, flamingo egg yolks have a pinkish hue.
Both the male and female flamingos keep an egg warm before it hatches.
With most birds, only the mother sits on the egg.
However, flamingo parenting is equal for both roles.
The parents’ only responsibility is feeding the chicks with milk crop
until they can hunt for prey with their peers.
Baby flamingos aren’t born with curved beaks.
Flamingo chicks’ beaks become curved after a few months.
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