Name: Chilean Flamingo
Scientific name: Phoenicopterus chilensis
Range: South America, from Peru to southern Argentina and Chile, including parts of Bolivia, Paraguay, and southern Brazil
Habitat: Salt marshes(shallow) and brackish coastal lagoons(shallow) in semi-tropical and tropical areas
Status: Special concern
Diet in the wild: Filter-feeder; feeds on small crustacean algae and unicellular organisms
Diet in the zoo: soupy mixture of grain, chicken mash, canned dog food, vitamin supplements
Location in the zoo: Flamingo Exhibit left of entry bridge.
Physical description:
Four to five feet tall, and can weigh anywhere from 13-16 lbs. Long, sinuous neck, and long, extremely slender legs. Bill is bent downward in the middle. Pale pink in color, with darker pink and black wings, dull yellow or yellow-gray legs with dark pink bands at the joints, and pink feet.
General information:
Very gregarious, living in flocks usually numbering in the thousands. Pink coloring comes from a pigment that the animal consumes. In captivity, this pigment must be manufactured into the flamingo's food, or else the animal would be a dull buff color. Flamingos require shallow water and lots of mud; nests are built by surrounding the egg with a large pile of mud, which is then incubated for around thirty days.
From WhoZoo http://www.whozoo.org/students/chrsmi/chilflam.htm |
