Flamenco Común

The pink of the Greater Flamingo is not innate but drawn from its food: carotenoid pigments in the algae, diatoms, brine shrimp, and small crustaceans it filters from shallow alkaline and saline water. The largest flamingo species, it is predominantly white-pink with crimson wing coverts revealed in flight, long pink legs, a sinuous neck, and a downward-bent, black-tipped bill built for filter feeding. It gathers on alkaline lakes, coastal lagoons, mudflats, and salt pans across Africa, southern Europe, the Middle East, and the Indian subcontinent, requiring large undisturbed areas to breed. One to three eggs are incubated for 27 to 31 days, with young fledging between 71 and 98 days. Colonies keep up a loud, goose-like honking chorus. The species is classified as Least Concern.