These unmistakable birds spend much of their day wading about with their heads upside down, filtering food from the waters of lakes and lagoons.

Statistics
Body length: 142cm

Physical description
Unmistakable as flamingos, greater flamingos are tall, long-legged, fragile-looking pink, red and black water birds, seen wading in shallows or swimming. They can be distinguished from lesser flamingos by their larger size, paler plumage and pink bill.

Distribution
They are widely distributed from southern Europe to India and the east and south of the African continent (including Madagascar).

Habitat
Occurring on alkaline and saline lakes and estuarine lagoons, these birds seldom frequent freshwater habitats. They often benefit from human constructions such as salt-works, sewage lagoons or large dams.

Diet
They feed mainly on small aquatic invertebrates filtered from bottom mud, though they can subsist upon blue-green algae and the organic content of the bottom mud.

Behaviour
Flamingos are highly gregarious, almost always found in flocks of 100 or more.

Reproduction
Greater flamingos breed in large colonies (usually 1000-5000 pairs), sometimes associated with lesser flamingos. They are highly erratic, opportunistic breeders, rather than nesting annually in frequently used sites. They may breed twice within one year. One egg is laid on a truncated mud cone. After a week or so chicks collect into large crèches, guarded and herded by adults.

Voice
Flamingos produce a series of grunts and murmurs, interspersed with goose-like honks.