Why Do Flamingos have pink Feathers?

Why Do Flamingos have pink Feathers?

• The flamingo bird is so easy on its neck that forms the letter S, a slender body, with long legs. The color of his fur is pink.
• When hatched from eggs, flamingo chicks are gray. So why does its adult fur turn pink?
• This is because of the influence of what they eat. As is known, food in nature contains natural dyes that make it yellow, orange or red. It's called carotenoids. Well, this substance is also found in the various foods consumed by flamingos.
• The more it consumes foods that contain red pigment, the redder the color of its fur.

Flamingo birds are so easy to recognize. S-shaped neck, slender body, with long legs. The beak is curved downwards with a black tip. The color of the fur is pink.

This bird is very popular, especially in America. His statue is widely used as a garden ornament. That's all thanks to the work of artist Don Featherstone who won the Ig Nobel prize in 1996 for art. The Ig Nobel held at Harvard University is a parody of the Nobel awards.

Flamingo is an amazing bird. Not only because of the beauty of its fur, but also the uniqueness of its behavior. This bird has long been curious and has become the object of research by experts. Recently, for example, researchers were able to explain why flamingos like to stand on one leg, even during sleep.

The study found that the flamingo's leg joints maintain a locked resting position during one-leg stance, so that less energy is expended. Researchers also use dead flamingos to reveal this secret. The result is being able to stand on one foot without any assistance at all, a phenomenon called passive gravitational stillness.

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Red color _

Flamingo comes from the Spanish and Latin flamenco , which means fire. This refers to the red color of its fur. Despite the fact, not all types of flamingos are red because some are orange.

Flamingos can also dance. Especially when looking for a partner. The male will dance in regular back and forth or sideways motions with his necks erect together. If the female is impressed by the gesture, she will make him a partner for life.

When hatched from eggs, flamingo chicks are gray. So why does its adult fur turn pink ?

This is because of the influence of what they eat. As is known, food in nature contains natural dyes that make it yellow, orange or red. It's called carotenoids . Well, this substance is also found in the various foods consumed by flamingos.

Flamingo includes all eaters or omnivores. Besides plants, he also eats meat, molluscs [soft animals], crustaceans [shrimp], and small fish. The more food that contains red pigment, the redder the color of the coat will be.

This also explains why flamingos in areas rich in food are redder than flocks living in areas with little food. This is because the level of carotenoid content in animals and plants in some regions of the world is also different.

Thus, the flamingo species that inhabit the area have a different color compared to other flamingo species. When a flamingo stops eating carotenoid- containing foods , the new feathers that grow will be paler in color.

Recent studies have shown that flamingos with a brighter red color tend to be healthier and find mates more easily.

Paul Rose , an expert in ecological behavior at the University of Exeter, United Kingdom, says that color plays an important role in the social relationships of these animals.

Both males and females tend to prefer lighter colored mates. The pink color is a sign that a flamingo is healthy and fit. The report in the journal Ethology states that the brighter the color, the more aggressive it is.

Rose and colleagues made 210 videos, each lasting 1 minute, recording the activities of 45 flamingos at the WWT Slimbridge Wetland Centre, Gloucestershire, England. They ranked the color of the birds and the behavior they exhibited. Researchers found that lighter flamingos tend to be aggressive and easily challenged to fights.

There are six species of flamingos in the world. Four species spread in America, and two species in Asia, Europe and Africa. The six species are Greater Flamingo [ Phoenicopterus roseus ], ​​Chilean Flamingo [ Phoenicopterus chilensis ], Lesser Flamingo [ Phoeniconaias minor ], Andean Flamingo [ Phoenicopterus andinus ], James Flamingo [ Phoenicoparrus jamesi ], and American or Caribbean Flamingo [ Phoenicopterus ruber ].

Flamingo likes warm and humid areas, often found in tropical and subtropical areas. In Asia, flamingos can be found in India, Iran, the United Arab Emirates. In Europe, flamingos are found in Spain, Italy and France. While in Africa, spread in Kenya, Tanzania, Botswana. In Indonesia, flamingos can only be seen in zoos.