Have you ever ever stopped to surprise why flamingos appear to be they’ve stepped out of a tropical sundown? With their hanging pink, coral, and generally even reddish feathers, these birds are among the many most vibrant within the animal kingdom. However right here’s the twist, they’re not born that manner.
Surprisingly, flamingos hatch with comfortable gray or white feathers. Yep, that basic pink isn’t one thing they’re born with. It’s one thing they develop into, and consider it or not, it’s all about what they eat.
Flamingos feed on a mixture of algae, brine shrimp, and tiny crustaceans present in salty wetlands and lagoons. These meals are wealthy in pure pigments known as carotenoids, the identical stuff that makes carrots orange and salmon pink. When flamingos digest these pigments, their our bodies break them down and deposit them into their pores and skin and feathers, step by step turning them that stunning rosy hue.
Surprisingly, flamingos hatch with comfortable gray or white feathers (Supply: Freepik)
The extra pigment-packed their weight loss plan, the deeper the color. Flamingos in areas the place meals is wealthy in carotenoids are inclined to look extra vibrant, whereas others could seem lighter or paler relying on what’s accessible of their habitat.
Right here’s one thing you won’t anticipate: flamingos don’t simply depend on meals to remain fabulous; in addition they do a little bit of grooming with model. Scientists have found that in mating season, these birds rub oil from glands close to their tails onto their feathers. This oil accommodates carotenoids too, appearing like a pure blush to make their colors pop much more. It’s mainly flamingo cosmetics, and sure, it really works.
Why go to all this effort? As a result of within the flamingo world, color issues. A flamingo with wealthy, vibrant feathers normally has a robust immune system and entry to good meals — two indicators of a wholesome, fascinating mate. When it’s time to draw a companion, the brightest hen typically will get essentially the most consideration.
Apparently, when flamingos change into mother and father, they often lose their vivid colouring quickly. That’s as a result of they divert their carotenoid consumption into producing “crop milk” to feed their chicks, a reminder that even essentially the most lovely birds make sacrifices for household.
