What do Flamingos Eat

Flamingos are fascinating birds with interesting features, like, their pinkish plumage. These birds are found in both fresh water and saline water. The flamingos habitat includes lagoons, estuaries, mangrove swamps, mud flats and large shallow coastal or inland lakes tidal flats. Usually, flamingos are found in groups that wades through warm, shallow waters, in search of food. These birds are found in some parts of Africa, Asia, North America, Central America, South America, and Europe.

There are six species of flamingos and their body color range between pale pink to bright pink, crimson or vermilion. Apart from this coloration, their characteristic features include long legs and the boomerang-shaped beaks. In fact, the name flamingo is said to be derived from the Latin word 'flamma', which means flame. It is said that the color of these birds are derived from their diet. Then, what do flamingos eat to get that characteristic color?

Flamingo Diet

These birds are not born with the pink plumage, but, they have a gray coloration that is retained for around two to three years. The pinkish coloration develops gradually and this is due to their diet, which mainly includes shrimp. This is substantiated by the fact that those pink flamingos, who are deprived of shrimp in their diet, turns white in color. A young flamingo, which is not fed with shrimp, but with all other types of food, rich in essential nutrients, will also grow to a white flamingo only.

So, it is the consumption of shrimp that gives the characteristic color of flamingos. Studies show that shrimp is rich in beta-carotene, which is found in carrots and some other fruits and vegetables. It is this compound that gives the reddish shade to carrots and other such vegetables and fruits. If foods rich in beta-carotene is consumed regularly for a prolonged period, then, it is natural for the skin and plumage to change color to different shades of red from pink to crimson. What do flamingos eat, apart from shrimp? These birds feed on diatoms, seeds, blue-green algae, small fish, crabs and mollusks.

Feeding Habits and Adaptations

As mentioned above, flamingos wade through shallow waters in search of food. Their long legs and partially webbed foot help them in this task. The feeding habits of these birds are also very interesting. They search for food in the waters with the help of their large beaks, that vary in size and shape, from one species to another. They filter the food in the water with their beaks and this task is done with their heads in an upside down position. When the heads are upside down, the flat surface of the boomerang-shaped beaks can skim the shallow water. In this position, flamingos move their head sidewards, thereby collecting water with food.

In short, it is the tongue of a flamingo that acts like a pump to suck in water and then expel it after filtering. The tongue of this bird has ridged plates that can trap food particles. It is said that an average flamingo can do this filtering at least twenty times per minute. Recent studies show that a it's tongue has erectile tissue on both sides that makes the tongue erect and stable, while feeding. Once the food is trapped by the tongue, the water is expelled from the beak. One of the interesting facts about flamingos is that even though, these birds feed from saline water, they drink only fresh water.

Another interesting fact regarding the feeding habits of flamingos is that they do not regurgitate food for their young ones. Both male and female adult flamingos produce crop milk, which is highly nutritious. This red-colored milk is secreted from the upper digestive tract and is highly nutritious with 9% protein and 15% fat. As the chicks do not have fully grown beaks that are used in filter feeding, this milk will provide them with sufficient nutrients, till they develop full-sized beaks.