Flamingo diary
Flamingos are one of the most popular animals exhibited in animal collections. If you’re keen to learn more about them and delve deeper in the ways in which WWT keeps its flamingos then follow Paul's diary up-to-date with all things flamingo. Paul Rose is a PhD student from the University of Exeter’s Centre for Research in Animal Behaviour, currently based in the Conservation Programmes Directorate at WWT, who is investigating the social behaviour of captive flamingo flock
World Wetlands Day; a flamingo's perspective.
Lake Manyara in Africa's Rift Valley is an important environment for lesser flamingos to feed and rest in on their travels between the other lakes across Kenya, Tanzania and the like. The fragile nature of these soda lake
2 February 2014
Flamenco flamingo in the middle of winter.
Although it is only the start of the year, and no where near breeding time, the flamingos at WWT Slimbridge seem to be getting in the mood to think about eggs, and chicks, and youngsters... This week, I have seen a lot of dancing, head-flagging and milli
22 January 2014
New Year flamingos
Happy New Year flamingo followers! The month of resolutions and expectations. I have spent the past week or so ploughing through lots of data (mainly in the form of photographs of birds standing next to other birds) and I thought it would be nice to share
10 January 2014
Flamingos into 2014
Nose to beak. Great views of the birds are what makes Slimbridge so special. Despite the horrid weather, the birds can still be watched inside their houses. The Caribbean flock looks stunning! So it's the end of anoth
30 December 2013
Where do flamingos come from?
Here's some more Christmas reading for you. In my last post I was discussing the link between the flamingo and the mythical Phoenix, and how once-upon-a-time, one was thought to the same as the other. Whilst we are sure in our knowledge that flamingos mos
20 December 2013
The legend of the fire bird.
It's a quiet time of the year for flamingo behaviour. Flocks are generally not in the mood for courting (although several head-flagging Caribbeans prove me wrong on this score) and the chilly weather means that flamingos may limit their activity somewhat
8 December 2013
Why do flamingos need houses?
If you wander around the grounds of any of the WWT centres that keeps flamingos you will find large indoor houses (think enormous garden shed but more damp) attached to each flamingo enclosure. These indoor houses are really important for keeping flamingo
23 November 2013
Notable birds to look out for... the famous lesser
So another instalment of celebrity (for want of a better word!) flamingo to look out for on your next visit to WWT. Take a stroll over to the lesser flamingos and see if you can pick out the ring code "BCF"; this is attached to the newest addition to
10 November 2013
Friends for life
I have been reviewing the various records that stretch back over the years relating to the flamingos that have come and gone, and are still around, at Slimbridge. I am continually amazed by their age, longevity and seeming imperviousness to the ravages o
27 October 2013
Youngsters fly the nest.
The class of 2013 have moved out of home to give mum and dad some breathing space. This year's healthy batch of Caribbean flamingo juveniles now reside in the house with the Andean flamingos and Mr James. These older (wiser?) birds are a much more settled
14 October 2013
Musings on flamingo behaviour, part two...
The Slimbridge flamingos continue to be a riot of colour and activity even as autumn progresses. In spite of it now being the end of the breeding season, birds might still be seen doing the odd courtship display. There is no real set time of year for whe
2 October 2013
Update on the juvenile bonanza
I have been away from WWT Slimbridge for a few weeks and so it has been a pleasant surprise to come back and find so many bundles of fluff running around the legs of taller, pink parents. Or indeed, in some cases, how quickly bundles of fluff have turned
24 September 2013
Team Chilean at Washington
There's a real flurry of activity going on at WWT Washington. Chilean flamingo eggs have been winging their way from various WWT flocks to Washignton in Tyne and Wear where they have been placed into the experienced care of Owen and his team of aviculturi
14 September 2013
Musings on flamingo behaviour, part one...
My PhD supervisor at Exeter University and I have been chatting a lot recently about wild flamingo behaviour, how to measure it and how to include some aspect of it in my research. One of the joys of places like WWT Slimbridge is that flamingos can be eas
6 September 2013
Yet more baby Chileans!
And right on cue, as predicted by the aviculturists, the Chilean flamingo chicks are hatching at WWT Slimbridge and can be seen tottering around the nesting area of the South American Pen. I'm not going to go into masses of detail about the unpredictabi
28 August 2013