Interesting Facts About Flamingo Birds

Even if we don’t watch any documentaries or even turn on the television, when we look out the window, we see things that will amaze us, because this is exactly what living means. For example, in the past, people in Turkey looked at the sky and They saw a bird they called a six crane and They mentioned him in folk songs. What is a golden crane? Well, that’s the flamingo we see in documentaries.

Although they are in a narrow ecosystem, flamingo lives in our country. Their legs are long and thin compared to their bodies, flamingos, with their necks that are very long compared to their bodies, long beaks, and most importantly, feathers with fascinating shades of pink, white and red; It offers a visual that we cannot get enough of. If these are all you know about it, you will be quite surprised by some of its interesting features.

Information about Flamingo:

• Only one of the six known flamingo species lives in Turkey.
• The substance that gives color to carrots and tomatoes also gives color to flamingo.
• The nutritional system of flamingos is the same as that of whales.
• The joint you see as a knee is not actually a knee.
• Flamingos fly, and fly very well.
• There is a very logical reason why they sleep on one leg.
• Both mother and father can feed baby flamingos.
• In flamingos, the female bird does not build the nest.

Only one of the six known flamingo species lives in Turkey:

Flamingo is the common name for birds belonging to the Phoenicopteridae family. There are six species under three known genera. Greater, lesser, Chilean, Andean, James and Caribbean flamingo These types called; They live in Africa, southwestern Asia, Central America, southern Spain, southern Europe and some small ecosystems. Of these six species in Turkey, only the greater flamingo species lives in Tuz Lake and its surroundings. In our country, they are called six cranes.

The substance that gives color to carrots and tomatoes also gives color to flamingo:

Flamingos carry countless shades of different colors such as pink, red, orange, yellow and white. In fact, they do not have these colors from birth. What gives them this color; It is also a substance called carotenoid, which gives orange color to carrots and red color to tomatoes. This substance naturally produces pigments in the colors we have listed. Flamingos absorb this substance from the algae, brine shrimp and other microscopic algae they eat, and the color of their feathers changes. When flamingos that do not live in their natural environment cannot obtain this substance, their feathers turn into a predominantly white color.

The nutritional system of flamingos is the same as that of whales:

On one hand, whales weighing tens of tons, on the other hand, flamingos weighing a few kilos; ‘How come their nutritional systems are the same?’ You may be surprised. Namely, flamingos, like whales, are filter feeders. They eat algae in the water, small seeds, small crustaceans, larvae and other small creatures living in shallow waters. To eat these, they put their beaks into the water and collect these creatures in their beaks along with a large body of water. They then shake their beaks to expel the water and in the process Comb-like plates next to their beaks keep food inside. Thus, the flamingo enjoys its water-free food. Whales take huge swarms of algae into their mouths in this way, filter the water out, and eat what’s left.

The joint you see as a knee is not actually a knee:

One of the details that amaze people most about flamingos is that they walk with their knees bent backwards. Of course, this is a completely wrong idea. Okay, it may look like that from the outside, but actually the joint we see as the knee is the flamingo’s ankle. The flamingo’s knee joint is close to its body, hidden among its feathers, and moves by bending forward, just like the knee joint of us humans. If you stand in front of the mirror and walk on your fingers, you will actually understand the movement of flamingo joints.

Flamingos fly, and fly very well:

When we look at flamingos from the outside, we compare them to ostriches, which are a type of flightless bird. Because we often see flamingos hanging out on the ground We may think that they cannot fly. But flamingos are great fliers. They are just like all birds and do not fly when it is not necessary. They generally fly in flocks during migration. Moreover, these migrations towards the south are quite long journeys. We will not know what it means to see a flamingo in the air.

There is a very logical reason why they sleep on one leg:

‘What position do we sleep in most comfortably?’ If we think about it for forty years, the last option that comes to our mind is sleeping on one leg, but for flamingos, this is the first option. We know it sounds like an urban legend, but flamingos really sleep on one leg. Experts examined this situation and discovered that flamingos use much more muscle power to stand on two legs. In other words, the reason why flamingos sleep on one leg is that they use much less muscle strength in that position.

Both mother and father can feed baby flamingos:

If we look at other bird species, we see that the young are fed mostly with foods mashed in the beak. Flamingos, on the other hand, produce milk similar to mammals. This milk is produced in a special part of their crop and is full of protein and healthy fats. This milk produced in the crop is transferred to the baby orally. The interesting thing is that both mother and father flamingo can produce this milk. So, if we look at it from this perspective, they have a much more efficient feeding system than the milk produced by mammals.

In flamingos, the female bird does not build the nest:

Unfortunately, our ancestors said, ‘The female bird builds the nest.’ They made a wrong generalization when saying this. Because flamingos build their nests together. Flamingos as monogamous creatures After mating, they build a nest together where the egg will incubate. This nest, made using mud, resembles a small volcano. After an average incubation period of 30 days, flamingo chicks hatch with white and gray feathers. As they feed, their colors change, just like adult flamingos. This color change process can take several years.

Interestingly, within about a week after birth, baby flamingos begin to occasionally leave the nest to wander around and practice feeding. About a month later just like a nursery Cubs of the same age come together and begin to wander and find food together. Parents recognize their offspring by their voices.

He has an appearance that fascinates those who see him. We talked about interesting information about flamingo birds, some of which you may have heard for the first time. ‘How much more can nature amaze us?’ Every time we think about it, another example comes up, right?