Flamingo

Flamingos or flamingoes are gregarious wading birds in the genus Phoenicopterus (from Greek φοίνικοπτερος meaning "Phoenix's wing"), the only genus in the family Phoenicopteridae. There are four flamingo species in the Americas and two species in the Old World.

Species
Six flamingo species are recognized by most sources, and these are generally placed in one genus. Two species, the Andean and the James's Flamingo, are often placed in the genus Phoenicoparrus instead of Phoenicopterus.

Systematics and evolution
A wide variety of birds have been proposed as their closest relatives, on a wide variety of evidence. To reflect the uncertainty about this matter, flamingos are generally placed in their own order.

Traditionally, the long-legged Ciconiiformes, probably a paraphyletic assemblage, have been considered the flamingos' closest relatives and the family was included in the order. Usually the ibises and spoonbills of the Threskiornithidae were considered their closest relatives within this order. Earlier genetic studies, such as those of Charles Sibley and colleagues, also supported this relationship. Relationships to the waterfowl were considered as well, especially as flamingos and waterfowl are parasitized by feather lice of the genus Anaticola, which are otherwise exclusively found on ducks and geese. Other scientists proposed flamingos as waders most closely related to the stilts and avocets, Recurvirostridae. The peculiar presbyornithids were used to argue for a close relationship between flamingos, waterfowl, and waders, but they are now known to be unequivocal waterfowl with a peculiarly derived morphology paralleling waders and flamingos.

Relationship with grebes


Recent molecular studies have suggested a relation with grebes,  while morphological evidence also strongly supports a relationship between flamingos and grebes. They hold at least eleven morphological traits in common, which are not found on other birds. Many of these characteristics have been previously identified on flamingos, but not on grebes. The fossil Palaelodids can be considered evolutionarily, and ecologically, intermediate between flamingos and grebes.

For the grebe-flamingo clade, the taxon Mirandornithes ("miraculous birds" due to their extreme divergence and apomorphies) has been proposed. Alternatively, they could be placed in one order, with Phoenocopteriformes taking priority.

Fossil record
Flamingoes are well attested in the fossil record, with the first unequivocal member of the extant family Phoenicopteridae, Elornis known from the Late Eocene. A considerable number of little-known birds from the Late Cretaceous onwards are sometimes considered to be flamingo ancestors. These include the genera Torotix, Scaniornis, Gallornis, Agnopterus, Tiliornis, Juncitarsus and Kashinia; these show a mix of characters and are fairly plesiomorphic in comparison to modern birds. (The supposed "Cretaceous flamingo" Parascaniornis is actually a synonym of Baptornis and not a close relative to any living bird). An extinct family of peculiar "swimming flamingos", the Palaelodidae, are believed to be related to, or to be the ancestors of, the modern flamingos. This is sometimes rejected, since the fossil Elornis is known to be from some time before any palaelodid flamingos have been recorded. There exists a fairly comprehensive fossil record of the genus Phoenicopterus. The systematics of prehistoric Phoenicopteridae known only from fossils is as follows:


 * Phoenicopteridae
 * Elornis (Middle? Eocene - Early Oligocene) - includes Actiornis
 * Phoenicopteridae gen. et sp. indet. (Camacho Middle? - Late Miocene? of San José, Uruguay)


 * Prehistoric species of Phoenicopterus:
 * Phoenicopterus croizeti (Middle Oligocene - Middle Miocene of C Europe)
 * Phoenicopterus floridanus (Early Pliocene of Florida)
 * Phoenicopterus stocki (Middle Pliocene of Rincón, Mexico)
 * Phoenicopterus copei (Late Pleistocene of W North America and C Mexico)
 * Phoenicopterus minutus (Late Pleistocene of California, USA)
 * Phoenicopterus aethiopicus
 * Phoenicopterus eyrensis (Late Oligocene of South Australia)

Description
Flamingos often stand on one leg, the other tucked beneath the body. The reason for this behavior is not fully understood. Some suggest that the flamingo, like some other animals, has the ability to have half of its body go into a state of sleep, and when one side is rested, the flamingo will swap legs and then let the other half sleep, but this has not been proven. Recent research has indicated that standing on one leg may allow the birds to conserve more body heat, given that they spend a significant amount of time wading in cold water. As well as standing in the water, flamingos may stamp their webbed feet in the mud to stir up food from the bottom.

Young flamingos hatch with grey plumage, but adults range from light pink to bright red due to aqueous bacteria and beta carotene obtained from their food supply. They are not naturally pink. A well-fed, healthy flamingo is more vibrantly coloured and thus a more desirable mate; a white or pale flamingo, however, is usually unhealthy or malnourished. Captive flamingos are a notable exception; many turn a pale pink as they are not fed carotene at levels comparable to the wild. This is changing as more zoos begin to add prawns and other supplements to the diets of their flamingos.

Feeding
Flamingos filter-feed on brine shrimp and blue-green algae. Their beaks are specially adapted to separate mud and silt from the food they eat, and are uniquely used upside-down. The filtering of food items is assisted by hairy structures called lamellae which line the mandibles, and the large rough-surfaced tongue. The pink or reddish color of flamingos comes from carotenoid proteins in their diet of animal and plant plankton. These proteins are broken down into pigments by liver enzymes. The source of this varies by species, and affects the saturation of color. Flamingos whose sole diet is blue-green algae are darker in color compared to those who get it second hand (e.g. from animals that have digested blue-green aglae). Zoo-fed flamingos, who often lack the color enhancer in their diet, may be given food with the additive canthaxanthin.

Lifecycle
Flamingos are very social birds that live in colonies that can number in the thousands. These large colonies are believed to serve three purposes for the flamingos: predator avoidance, maximizing food intake, and exploiting scarce suitable nesting sites. The most basic and stable social unit of flamingos are pair bonds which are made up of one male and one female. The bond between them tends to be strong; however, in larger colonies (where there are more mates to choose from), mate changes will occur. In pair bonds, both the male and the female contribute to building the nest for their egg and defending it. Before breeding, flamingo colonies split into breeding groups of around 15-50 birds. Both males and females in these groups perform synchronized ritual displays. These displays serve to both stimulate synchronous nesting and establish pair formation for birds that do not already have mates. A flamingo group stands together and display to each other by rasing neck, followed by calling with head-flagging and then wing flapping. The displays do not seem to be directed towards an individual but instead occur randomly.

Flamingo pair bonds establish and defend nesting territories. They locate a suitable spot on the mudflat to build a nest, which is usually chosen by the female. It is during nest building that copulation usually occurs. Nest building can also be interrupted by another couple trying to steal the nesting site. Flamingos will viciously defend their nesting sites and young. After the chicks hatch, the only parental expense is feeding. Flamingos produce a crop milk, like pigeons and doves, due to the action of a hormone called prolactin (see Columbidae). It contains more fat and less protein than the latter does, and it is produced in glands lining the whole of the upper digestive tract, not just the crop. Both parents nurse their chick, and young flamingos feed on this milk, which also contains red and white blood cells. In the first six days, the adults and chicks stay in the nesting sites. At around seven to twelve days the chicks begin to move and explore their surroundings. After two weeks, the chicks join groups called "microcrèches" and their parent soon leave them in these groups. Later, many microcrèches come together to form crèches which contain thousands of chicks. Chicks that do not stay in their crèches are vulnerable to predators.

Conservation status
Scientists have discovered that flamingos are dying by the thousands along the Great Rift Valley lakes of Kenya and Tanzania. However, they are baffled as to the reason. Possible causes include avian cholera, botulism, metal poisoning, pesticides or poisonous bacteria, say researchers. Also, fears for the future of the Lesser Flamingo — Phoeniconaias minor — have been raised by plans to pipe water from one of their key breeding areas, the shores of Lake Natron. The lakes are crucial to the birds' breeding success because the flamingos feed off the blooms of cyanobacteria that thrive there.

In captivity
The first flamingo hatched in a European zoo was a Chilean Flamingo at Zoo Basel in Switzerland in 1958. Since then, over 389 flamingos grew up in Basel and were distributed to other zoos around the globe.

Relationship with humans
In Ancient Rome, flamingo tongues were considered a delicacy. Also, Andean miners have killed flamingos for their fat, believed to be a cure for tuberculosis.

Ancient Egyptians believed flamingos to be the living representation of the god Ra.

The Moche people of ancient Peru worshipped nature. They placed emphasis on animals and often depicted flamingos in their art.

Pink plastic flamingo statues are popular lawn ornaments in the United States.

Flamingos are the national bird of The Bahamas.