What kind of bird is the lesser flamingo that can be seen at zoos and animal parks? We will explain its characteristics, ecology, and habitat. It is the smallest species of flamingo and can be said to be a very familiar creature. Unfortunately, this flamingo, which lives in northwestern India and Africa, is designated as an endangered species.
What is Lesser Flamingo? About basic status
The lesser flamingo is a bird classified in the order Flamingidae and family Flamingidae. The scientific name is Phoenicopterus minor. Another name is Little Flamingo. The total length is 80-90 cm and the weight is 1.2-2.7 kg.
| Japanese（和名） | コフラミンゴ,コガタフラミンゴ |
| English（英名） | Lesser Flamingo |
| scientific name(学名) | Phoenicopterus minor |
| classification（分類） | Ave、 Phoenicopteriformes、Phoenicopteridae、Phoenicopterus 鳥綱、フラミンゴ目、フラミンゴ科、フラミンゴ属 |
| IUCN Status(保全状況) | VULNERABLE |
| Length（体長） | 80-90cm |
| Weight（体重） | 1.2–2.7 kg |
About classification
The lesser flamingo belongs to the genus Flamingo.
🔬 Classification class
- 界（Kingdom）：動物界（Animalia）
- 門（Phylum）：脊索動物門（Chordata）
- 綱（Class）：鳥綱（Aves）
- 目（Order）：フラミンゴ目（Phoenicopteriformes）
- 科（Family）：フラミンゴ科（Phoenicopteridae）
- 属（Genus）：Phoeniconaias
- 種（Species）：Phoeniconaias minor（コフラミンゴ、Lesser Flamingo）
About habitat
It is known that the lesser flamingo inhabits a fairly wide range from the African continent to India and Pakistan.
🌏 1. Geographic Distribution
Main Distribution Areas: East Africa to Southern Africa, Western Asia, and the Indian Subcontinent
Africa: Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Ethiopia, Namibia, and South Africa
Asia: Western India and parts of Pakistan
Migration Habits: Moves between salt and shallow lakes depending on the season
🏞 2. Habitat Characteristics
Mainly lakes, salt, and alkaline lakes
Can also live in high-salinity and alkaline lakes
Shallow waters, suitable for filter feeding (eating algae and microcrustaceans)
Open environments
Prefers shallow waters with good visibility and safety over forests and tall grasslands
Living in Flocks
Often forms large flocks of thousands to hundreds of thousands of birds
🐾 3. Habitat Characteristics
Depends on salt and alkaline lakes, where food is abundant
Cyanobacteria, algae, microcrustaceans, etc.
Migratory Behavior and Adaptation to Water Level Changes
When lakes dry up or food becomes scarce, they migrate to other lakes in flocks
feature is? What kind of creature is it?
The lesser flamingo is the smallest species of flamingo and lives in alkaline and saltwater lakes. They are highly social animals, and Lake Nakuru in Kenya is world-famous for their large herds. The legs are bright pink. The flamingo has a large black part on its beak and is the most abundant flamingo, with an estimated number of 2 million flamingos.
🐦 1. Physical Characteristics
Body Size: The smallest flamingo
Body Length: Approximately 80-90 cm
Wingspan: Approximately 90-100 cm
Weight: Approximately 1-1.5 kg
Body Color: Pale pink to red
Feathers and legs become brighter as adults
Beak: Uniquely curved, adapted for filtering food
The tip of the beak is black
Legs: Slender and reddish
Neck: Long, stretched during flight and foraging
🌿 2. Behavioral and Ecological Characteristics
Living in Flocks
Forms large flocks of several thousand to hundreds of thousands of birds
Feeding Method
Filters algae and tiny crustaceans from shallow salt and alkaline lakes
Flight Ability
Capable of long-distance migration, traveling between lakes
Large wings adapted for gliding and flocking
🏞 3. Habitat Adaptations
Dependent on salt and alkaline lakes
Can survive in high-salinity environments
Equipped with a filter that efficiently consumes cyanobacteria and algae as food
Feeds in shallow waters
Long legs allow it to forage while standing
🧠 4. Overall Impression
Small flamingo-like waterbird that lives in flocks
Distinguished by its bright pink body color and curved beak
Forms flocks in salt lakes and shallow waters and migrates
What is the ecology like?
Lesser flamingos live by eating plankton and algae in the water. They lay only one chalk egg at a time in a nest made of mounds of mud. The lesser flamingo is very long-lived, living for about 50 years.
🌿 1. Habitat
Main Locations: Salt and alkaline lakes in East Africa, shallow lakes in South Africa, and the Indian subcontinent
Environmental Characteristics:
Can survive in high-salinity and alkaline lakes
Prefers shallow, open waters and feeds in groups
🌙 2. Behavior Patterns
Diurnal: Forages and flies during the day
Flock Life: Forms large flocks of thousands to hundreds of thousands of birds
Migratory Behavior: Moves between lakes seasonally (depending on food and water level)
Flight Ability: Adapted for long-distance flight, gliding and using thermal currents to move energy-efficiently
🦗 3. Diet
Filter Feeding: Filters food from the water with its beak
Main Diet:
Cyanobacteria (algae)
Microcrustaceans (such as Artemia)
Foraging Behavior: Stands in shallow water, bends its neck, and filters food with its beak
🏠 4. Breeding and Nesting
Nest: Builds a small earthen mound using lake sand or mud
Eggs: Usually one, at most two
Incubation Period: Approximately 27-31 days
Chick Development: Fledglings occur approximately four weeks later, and chicks grow with parental feeding.
🧠 5. Sociality
Flocking: Foraging, breeding, and migration are all performed in groups.
Defense: Gathers together to protect themselves from predators.
Communication: Communicates with the flock through calls and visual cues.
🐾 6. Ecology Summary
Diurnal, flock-living, filter-feeding waterbird
Adapted to salt and alkaline lakes and migratory.
Breeds in small earthen mounds, and parents provide feeding and rearing of chicks.
About Lesser Flamingo Chicks
This article provides an overview of Lesser Flamingo chicks (young birds) in terms of appearance, growth, and behavior.
🍼 1. Birth and Early Characteristics
Egg Number: Usually 1, at most 2
Incubation Period: Approximately 27-31 days
Weight and Size: Approximately 50-70 g immediately after hatching, approximately 10-15 cm in length
Feathers: Downy, gray to whitish; adult pink and red feathers have not yet developed
Beak, Legs, and Eyes: Small and pale
🌱 2. Growth and Development
Early Life: Carried and fed in the parent’s nest
Feeding: Parents feed them algae and tiny crustaceans that have been softened in their stomachs by mouth
Feather Development: At 2-3 weeks of age, their coat color approaches that of an adult, changing from gray to pink
Fledgeling: They begin to leave the nest at approximately 4 weeks of age and develop by foraging for food on their own
🐾 3. Behavior/Personality
Highly dependent on the nest: For a while after hatching, they barely move and are held by their parents.
Intra-nest movement: Within the first few weeks of life, they begin to practice flapping their wings and bracing themselves.
Foraging under the guidance of their parents: They continue to follow their parents and learn how to find food even after leaving the nest.
🌙 4. Ecological Points
Early life: Highly dependent on their parents.
Relatively fast growth, allowing them to leave the nest in about one month.
Flight and filter-feeding skills are mastered by the time they leave the nest.
Is the lesser flamingo an endangered species?
Unfortunately, the lesser flamingo is listed as an endangered species. At present, the main breeding grounds in Africa are suffering from air and river pollution, and the population is drastically decreasing. Recent numbers of lesser flamingos in Lake Nakuru and Lake Bogoria are thought to be affected by heavy metal pollution. It is a migratory bird that is protected under the United Nations Environment Programme.
🐦 1. IUCN Assessment
Classification: Near Threatened (NT) or Vulnerable (VU)
The IUCN Red List often lists this species as “Endangered” (close to the endangered category).
Reason for Assessment: Although the population is relatively large, it is dependent on specific lakes and wetlands, making it vulnerable to environmental changes.
🌏 2. Threats
Habitat Destruction and Environmental Change
Drawing, Pollution, and Reclamation of Salt and Alkaline Lakes
Habitat Reduction Due to Industrial Development and Agriculture Around Lakes
Impacts of Human Activities
Tourism, Poaching, and Lake Water Harvesting
Decrease in Algae and Microorganisms, Which Its Food Source
Climate Change
Frequent Water Level Fluctuations in Salt and Shallow Lakes
Changes in Migratory Routes and Impacts on Breeding Grounds
🧠 3. Conservation Status
Protected in Nature Reserves and National Parks
Conservation efforts are underway in key habitats, such as Lake Nakuru in Kenya.
Because it lives in groups, its population remains relatively stable when the environment is stable.
Continuous monitoring and habitat protection are important.
Can lesser flamingos be kept?
As mentioned above, they are extremely protected, so breeding them is extremely difficult. Let’s enjoy the zoo at the zoo, you can access information on events, etc. inside the zoo and see a list. Please note that there are often fixed periods.
🐦 1. Difficulty in Captivity
Large Flock Living Habits
Lesser flamingos live in flocks ranging from several thousand to several hundred thousand birds.
Small populations cause stress, which negatively impacts their behavior and health.
Unique Diet
They primarily filter cyanobacteria and microcrustaceans.
A specialized feeding environment (depth and water quality) is required.
Highly dependent on their habitat.
Specific water quality and water level are required, such as salt lakes and alkaline lakes.
Recreating shallow water feeding and salinity regulation in the home is difficult.
Migratory Habits
Long-distance migrations depending on the season.
Stress builds up in captivity due to their migratory instinct.
🏛 2. Laws and Regulations
This bird is close to being endangered and requires protection.
Special permits are required for import and breeding in Japan and many other countries.
Unauthorized breeding and sale are illegal.
🐾 3. Captivity scenarios
Zoos and wildlife sanctuaries
School-based, shallow-water, and filter-feeding environments
Kept for breeding programs, conservation, and exhibition purposes
Home captivity is not possible
Food, water environment, school-based lifestyle, and migratory habits cannot be replicated
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