Greater flamingo

What’s the secret behind the flamingo’s famous pink plumage? It’s all in the diet! Tiny shrimp and algae rich in carotenoids gradually turn their feathers pink. The more they eat, the brighter they get.

But there’s so much more to these elegant birds than their colour. Greater flamingos are social creatures, gathering in flocks thousands strong. Their synchronised courtship displays - head-flagging, wing-saluting and marching in perfect formation – are mesmerising. Once paired, they build mud nests, share incubation duties and raise their chicks in a ‘creche’ – a nursery group cared for by a few adults while parents search for food.

With their specially adapted beaks, flamingos feed with their heads upside down, filtering tiny organisms from shallow water. But their wetland habitats are disappearing fast, and that puts these birds at risk.