Tampa's Lowry Park Zoo - Animal Fact Sheet


AMERICAN FLAMINGO (Phoenicopterus ruber)
Range:	West Africa to southeast India and Ceylon, and from Kazakhstan south to the Cape Province of South Africa
Habitat:	Coastal lagoons and mud flats, and also inland at large, shallow lakes, estuaries, marshlands
Diet:	Arhthropods, worms and mollusks
Approx. Dimensions of Adult:	Up to 50 inches
Lifespan:
Reproduction:	Nest in large colonies, building characteristic conical nests of mud and sand. Lay 1-2 white eggs, which are incubated by both parents. Incubation lasts 28-32 days. Young leave their nest after about 4 days and follow parents around. They fly at 78 days.
These gregarious birds are known for their honking and bill clattering. The body, head and neck are mostly white tinged with pink. He amount of color varies with age and diet. Carotenoid pigments give the flamingo its pink coloration. These occur naturally in the food that the flamingo eats in the wild. When feeding the flamingoes may have their heads completely submerged and feed close to the bottom. They sometimes stand in one place paddling with their feet to stir up the mud, but usually walk steadily forward.