10 Flamingo Facts

With their bright pink feathers and long legs, flamingos are unmistakable. But there’s more to these delightful birds than meets the eye—read on for 10 fun flamingo facts!

1. Flamingos are able to survive in salty waterways most other animals would find deadly.

Some flamingos breed and raise their young in salty soda lakes, which have a high concentration of carbonates that can burn or kill most other animals. Scientists don’t know how flamingos adapt to these harsh environments, but they think their tough leg skin may play a role.

2. Flamingos are able to breathe underwater for hours.

In the wild, flamingos spend much of their time in shallow waterways like lakes and ponds, but they can also dive for up to an hour at a time. This ability to breathe underwater allows them to travel long distances and hunt for prey in deep waters.

3. The flamingo’s unique bill is adapted for filter feeding.

A flamingo’s bill is uniquely adapted for its diet of algae, small seeds, tiny crustaceans (like brine shrimp) and fly larvae. It combines a narrow, flat upper mandible with a wide, trough-like lower mandible. Together, these two parts create a filter that can hold up to 4 gallons of water at once. Comb-like plates on the edge of the lower mandible help to trap food as it moves through the water.

4. Baby flamingos get their color from their mother’s “crop milk.”

Like many other birds, flamingo chicks are cared for by their parents until they are old enough to fend for themselves. To help the chicks grow, they are fed a rich milk called “crop milk.” This milk is produced in a part of the flamingo’s throat called the crop and brought to the chick through its mouth. The milk is rich in proteins and fats that the flamingo needs to thrive.

5. Flamingos have no natural predators in their habitats, but they are still vulnerable to human-caused threats.

In the wild, flamingos have no natural predators and can live up to 30 years (and longer in captivity). But their shallow habitats are vulnerable to pollution, expanding human settlements and other factors that could lead to population loss.

6. Flamingos can sleep while standing on one leg.

Scientists don’t know exactly why flamingos stand on one leg, but they think it may be a way to conserve heat. By tucking one leg up next to their body, they can lose less heat from the standing position than if the leg were down on the ground.

7. When a group of flamingos dance, they are known as a “flamboyance.”

These dramatic birds love to show off! They often perform synchronized “dancing” as part of their courting rituals. They also use their flamboyance to communicate, warning other flamingos of danger or alerting them to potential mates. Their “dancing” is reminiscent of line dancing and features synchronized head movements, pretend preening and wing salutes.