Flamingo (bird): a brief description, features and interesting facts

Learning that the flamingo is a bird, many are surprised. Very very beautiful is the word. But after seeing this bird with your own eyes, you stop doubting that this name suits her. The word "flamingo" means "red feather". And it is right. After all, representatives of this family have a red or bright pink color of feathers with a black edging along the edges, which is visible only at the moment of flight.

How does it look?

Flamingo is a bird, a brief description of which you will find in this article. Seeing her once, it is no longer confused with any other. These birds have a long neck and legs. And the neck often gets tired, and they put their head on the body to give rest to the stiffened muscles. A large beak consists of keratinized particles. It is bent in such a way that it would be convenient for them to catch food from the water. A special feature of the structure of the oral flamingo apparatus is that the upper jaw is mobile, and not the lower one. Flamingo is a bird that reaches a height of 90 to 135 cm and has a wingspan of 140-165 centimeters. Males are larger than females. An unforgettable impression leaves the color of feathers. Especially beautiful pink flamingos. A bird that even devotes songs and poems. The color of her feathers depends on the food she uses. Pink color is produced by carotenoids contained in small crustaceans. The more they are eaten by a bird, the brighter its color.

How to eat?

The structure of the flamingo is specially adapted for the way of life that the bird leads. Long legs with membranes rake the bottom of the shallow water from which it feeds. A hard beak filters the water, for this, there are bony projections on its edges. The flamingo is a bird that eats very small food, and in order not to swallow a large amount of water, it is percolating, as a result of which the water collected in the beak pours back and the food remains. To get food, she completely drops her head into the water. Interestingly, the language of flamingos was consumed in ancient Rome. A dish from it was considered a delicacy. But this muscular body helps birds to pump water into their mouths. What do they eat flamingos? The answer is simple - everything that falls into their beaks. After all, they do not have the opportunity to spit out what they do not like. Therefore, in the stomachs they find silt, small fish, small crustaceans, mollusks. Flamingo is a bird that lives in a collective. But while eating, she will vehemently defend her territory.

The secret is revealed

The representatives of the flamingo family have other characteristics of behavior. For example, they like to stand on one leg. And it is noticed that they do it mainly in water. Scientists have calculated that the period of standing on one leg can be about one hour. Surely, you were wondering why the waterbody is attracted to this pose. The thing is that birds improve their thermoregulation. Speaking in a simple way, they press their paw to keep warm. It is not so easy to stand in cold water for a long time. They fly, stretching their legs to the full length, and in flight they make sounds that are like a goose bug. Flamingos are a beautiful bird. Wonderful is a flock of these creatures, consisting of thousands of individuals. But flamingos do not come together to show off.

Time to breed

In a large colony it is easier to warn each other about the appearance of a predator and find a life partner. Interestingly, in a large flock, birds reproduce better. Flamingos attract a female by means of ritual movement. If the female is interested, she begins to repeat the movements for the male. Flamingos can be considered a model of loyalty. After all, these birds often create one pair for life and together grow chicks. During mating, adults gather near a source of fresh water. They begin their ritual movements, trying to show the size and beauty of the plumage. Flamingos straighten and stretch their wings and try to touch the beaks and tips of the wings of other close-lying birds. Scientists have noticed that it is done both by male individuals and by women. And the observer from the outside will not be able to determine the sex of the birds. After all, they have the same color. Females repeat movements for males. If the couple liked each other, then the female begins to move away from the collective, continuing to make movements that lure the male. The male will start to sway and follow his lady of heart to continue the race.

My house

Flamingos can breed at any time of the year. Although they prefer to do this in early summer. During this period, the water is warmer, and there are more opportunities to create a nest and get food. Nest these birds are built of clay. It represents a hill with a depression in the middle, into which the female will lay the egg. To make a bedding, flamingos use twigs, feathers and leaves. The female lays one egg milky white. Nasizhivaniyu engaged in both partners. When one of them is sitting on the nest, the other is getting food for himself. Chicks are born after 28-32 days. And although fluffy babies are born with their eyes open, they can not feed themselves and are not able to fly. In the nest, the chicks are 5-8 days. Kids are in contact with "children" from other nests. Parents distinguish their offspring from the sounds they make. This is provided by an interesting natural mechanism. The fact is that small birds start to make sounds while still in the egg. Parents get used to them and recognize the kids when they come into the world.

This is not a myth

But the chicks also recognize their parents by the voice they hear at a distance of 100 meters. They approach them, catching a special call. At flamingos it is not accepted to feed other's chicks. If the parents do not do this, the baby will die from hunger. It turns out that bird's milk is not fiction. It is this drink that the flamingos of their chicks feed. And it is very similar in composition to human, and is produced by the hormone prolactin. Only the chicks, of course, feed not like the young mammals. Bird's milk is secreted from a special nutritional secret that is in the beak of an adult bird. It is noteworthy that it is not white, but red. Together with it, the first pigments get into the chick's body, which color its feathers in pink color.

It is necessary to save

Yes, the flamingo-bird Red book about which, unfortunately, already has on its pages a record. Nowadays there is a struggle for their preservation. From whom should we protect these creatures? In their natural habitat, they have enemies - predators, who not only hunt for adults, but also destroy their eggs. And it's not just foxes, badgers, hyenas, baboons, wild boars, but also the Turkish vultures, and the yellow gulls. Also the enemy of the flamingo is a man. He consumes the eggs and meat of these beautiful birds. And also uses feathers that have an unusual coloring.

Kinds

Flamingo is a bird, a brief description of which you found in this article. I want to mention that in their family there are six species that have minor differences from each other. The Andean flamingo has an increase of 120 centimeters and a white-pink color of the plumage with black winged wings. His legs are yellow. The red flamingo has a red plumage, although it can also be bright pink. Pink flamingos - the largest among their brethren. His height can be 135 centimeters. His feathers are soft pink. Wings are red, with black feathers. Small flamingos have a small growth, only about 90 centimeters. Feathers are light or dark pink. The shape of the beak has slight differences. Flamingo James is almost the same size and color, but he has a bright yellow beak with a black tip.

That's it, a flamingo bird. Description for children can be somewhat simplified. But they must learn about one of the most beautiful birds of our planet, and why it has such coloring.