Flamingos: Phoenicopteriformes - Physical Characteristics, Habitat, Diet, Behavior And Reproduction, Greater Flamingo (phoenicopterus Ruber): Species Account - GEOGRAPHIC RANGE, FLAMINGOS AND PEOPLE, CONSERVATION STATUS
live threatened listed
Most flamingos live in South America and Africa. They also live in the Caribbean, southern Europe, southwest Asia, the Middle East, Pakistan, and India. Flamingos sometimes visit the Florida Keys and other places in southeastern United States.
Pictures of flamingos appeared on cave drawings 7,000 years ago. People have hunted them and eaten their eggs for thousands of years, but many flamingos live in places that are hard for people to reach, and many others are protected by laws.
Four of the five species of flamingos are in trouble. The Andean flamingo is listed as Vulnerable, facing a high risk of extinction. The James's, Chilean, and lesser flamingos are listed as Near Threatened, not currently threatened, but could become so.
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A flamingo feeds with its head upside down in the water. It sweeps its bill from side to side. The outer edges of both the upper and lower part of its bill are lined with two rows of comblike bristles called lamellae (luh-MEL-ee). As the bird sucks water into its mouth, the lamellae keeps large sea creatures from going in, while letting the foods it eats get through. Flamingos pump the water in an…
Physical characteristics: Greater flamingos are the largest species of flamingo. Most greater flamingo adults are white with a little pink in color, but those living in the Caribbean area are rosy red (the color depends on the food they eat). Their flight feathers are black and their bills are pink with a black tip. They are between 47 and 57 inches (1.2 to 1.5 meters) long from bill tip to tail, …
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