Why oh why are flamingos (and roseate spoonbills ) sooooo pink?
This is a really cool website...tells you about flamingos and so much more...
- Flamingos are social birds, and tens of thousands can live together in a single colony.
- Flamingos are one of the oldest species of birds, with fossil remains dating back 30 to 50 million years
- Flamingos are generally non-migratory birds, but a colony may relocate under the pressures of climate or water level changes
- Flamingos are filter feeders, living off algae and tiny animals such as shrimp, mollusks, and insect larvae that live in the mud at the bottom of shallow pools
- The flamingos’ feathers, legs, and face are colored by their diet, which is rich in alpha and beta carotenoid pigments. Carotenoids in crustaceans such as those in the flamingo diet are frequently linked to protein molecules, and may be blue or green. After being digested, the carotenoid pigments dissolve in fats and are deposited in the growing feathers, becoming orange or pink. The same effect is seen when shrimp change color during cooking.
Check out the website...it explains lots of things related to color...
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