Chilean Flamingo
They are a large species of flamingo at 110–130cm, they have a wingspan between 1.2-1.5m and they weigh between 2.5-3.5kgs. They are pink in colour but immature birds are grey before they get their full adult plumage. They have long, grey legs with pink knees. Their large bill is downward curving and more than half of it is black in colour. They have narrow wings with their primary and secondary flight feathers being black and their wing coverts being red.
Habitat
They live in warm, tropical environments in South America. They are found from sea level to altitudes of 4,500 m (14,760 ft) and they inhabit muddy, shallow lakes that can be either alkaline or brackish. As the soil in the area where they live is mainly alkaline it is barren of vegetation and desert like.
Diet
They feed upon aquatic invertebrates, diatoms and algae. They mainly feed during the day and they sweep their bill upside down through shallow water picking up food as they go. They are filter feeders and their tongue pumps up and down, 5 - 6 times per second, pushing the water out of their beak.
Breeding
They live in large flocks in the wild and require crowded conditions to stimulate breeding. During breeding season, males and females display a variety of behaviors to attract mates, including head flagging—swiveling their heads from side-to-side in tandem—and wing salutes, where the wings are repeatedly opened and closed. Flamingos in general have a poor record of successful breeding because they will delay reproduction until the environmental conditions are favorable for breeding. Males and females co-operate in building a pillar-shaped mud nest, and both incubate the egg laid by the female. Both parents also take turns incubating the egg. Upon hatching, the chicks have gray plumage; they do not gain the typical pink adult coloration for 2-3 years. Both male and female flamingos can produce a nutritious milk-like substance in their crop gland to feed their young.
Population
The population was estimated to number 200,000 individuals; however, a coordinated census in 2010 found 283,000 individuals, and gave a total population estimate of 300,000 individuals. Recent survey data are not indicative of a decline in the population at present; but it is suspected that the population will undergo a moderately rapid decline over the next three generations owing to egg-harvesting, hunting, disturbance and degradation of the species's habitats.
Threats
It has probably been subject to intensive egg-harvesting since the arrival of humans in South America and, in recent years, egg-collectors have been responsible for the partial or complete failure of colonies in Bolivia. Mar Chiquita (Argentina), perhaps the most important breeding site, is threatened by abstraction of water for irrigation projects. Mining has wrought extensive habitat alteration, and the species also suffers from hunting and tourism-related disturbance.
Conservation
Conservation Actions Proposed
Extend and continue simultaneous surveys during the breeding season to monitor population. Introduce measures to control intensive egg-harvesting.