Newsletter from Weltvogelpark Walsrode - 2010 Nr. 5 / Part 3
192 new Greater Flamingos move in the existing colony in Weltvogelpark Walsrode
Mid April – Two vans with trailers arrived to the Weltvogelpark, eagerly awaited by the zoological department. Onboard 192 Greater Flamingos (Phoenicopterus ruber roseus) from the Belgian CBCC (Cracid Breeding and Conservation Center) where they have been thriving and breeding for two decades but are now out-growing their enclosures. Their scheduled merge with the smaller group in Walsrode are in line with the natural behavior of the Flamingos that feel the most comfortable when they are living in a large group.
With practiced handling methods the Weltvogelpark keeping staff transferred the birds swift but calmly from the vehicles to their new enclosures, where the new group quickly seemed to feel comfortable. Initially the two different populations were watching each other with scrutiny and it took at least a few days before the birds were thoroughly mingling as a single flock.
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The special down curved bill of the Flamingos
is unique among birds.
(Photo: João Marco Rosa)
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Using their tongue as a piston they force water through their bill
filtering organic material including algae and small invertebrates.
(Photo: João Marco Rosa).
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This successful and eventless Transport, which was organized by the Belgian company "Het Veldhof" from Bocholt, was only possible through the good cooperation and organization of the Flemish, Belgian and Lower Saxon veterinary and environmental authorities. The Weltvogelpark thoroughly appreciate this fine cooperation which in the end benefits the welfare of the birds. Only in this way it was possible to enlarge the small colony at Walsrode, now the park can proudly present one of the world’s largest colonies of Flamingos in a zoological garden. As the Flamingos on departure from Belgium had already started breeding, 23 eggs were removed and also accompanied the birds on their travels to Germany. On arrival the eggs were placed in incubators. The first young Greater Flamingos hatched only a few days later and a group of 14 chicks are currently being hand-reared in the Weltvogelpark nursery.
Through this reinforcement of the Walsrode Flamingo-colony the Weltvogelpark also expect a significant and exponential increase in successful breeding results for the future. Even though most Flamingos lay only a single egg per clutch the high density in the group is very stimulating for the birds and is also a strong incitement for less experienced pairs to start breeding.
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Just after hatching the young Greater Flamingos remain immobile at the nest. Initially their legs and bill is colored pink, note the yellow "egg-tooth" (Foto: Simon Bruslund Jensen).
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The young Greater Flamingos are very active. It takes about
three months for their bill to fully develop in shape.
(Foto: João Marco Rosa).
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Young Greater Flamingos have straight bills and are covered with silvery grey downs in the first weeks of life and the only things slightly pink about them are their bills and feet. After hatching the young Flamingos are fully capable of walking and swimming, still they mostly stays in the nest for five – ten days and are tended to by one of the parents most of the time. Thereafter both parents leave the nest for foraging and the young's are left on their own for longer periods of time. During this period the young Flamingos gather together in large "kindergartens" that in the wild can number several thousand and are looked after by only a few adult birds. Once the parent's return they are able to recognize their own young on its voice. After four – six weeks they start developing a soft and downy plumage, however also these first feathers are grey and rather dull compared to the vivant rose colors of their parents. After 10 – 12 weeks the juvenile Greater Flamingos mostly eat by them self and their bill is fully developed and shows the typical curved shape.
It takes another two – three years for young Flamingos to develop fully adult plumage and they rarely start breeding before they are seven years or older. In zoos it has been proven that Flamingos are among the most long-lived animal and can live to be older than 50 years.
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In the foreground of this group a young Greater Flamingo displays the grayish juvenile plumage; it takes more than two years
to achieve the pink feather coloring. (Foto: Simon Bruslund Jensen).
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Adult Flamingos are capable of processing color pigments, which they obtain through their food, directly into their feathers. This also means that these specialized "filter feeders" need a high quality food to develop their beautiful colors. In past times zoos would use paprika powder or later chemically developed artificial color agents in high doses to achieve a colorful plumage. Today zoos rely on a well balanced pelleted food especially developed for Flamingos to keep their birds in perfect health.
The Greater Flamingo exhibit in the Weltvogelpark is perfectly framed with flowers in matching colors without becoming "too much". Particularly the Rhododendron and the early Tulips allows the heartbeat of photographers and artists alike to beat a little faster. In the wild this elegant Flamingo species occur in huge colonies in estuaries, mudflats, lakes and swamps throughout Africa, the Middle-east and parts of India as well as south west Europe. The closest natural occurrence to Germany is the groups found in Spain's Andalusia or the Camargue wetlands in France.
Simon Bruslund Jensen, Stefanie Hillmar and Geer Scheres
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