American Flamingo

With its brilliant pinkish-red plumage, long slender legs, and remarkably thin, flexible neck, the American flamingo (Phoenicopterus ruber) is one of the most world’s most distinctive birds. Together with the greater flamingo, it shares the title for the longest limbs relative to body size of any bird. The legs are pink and, being a wading bird, the front three toes are webbed. The bill has a characteristic downward bend, and is pale-yellow at the base, pink to orange in the middle, and black at the tip. Until 2002, the American flamingo was considered conspecific with the greater flamingo (Phoenicopterus roseus), found in Europe, Africa, and Asia. While both species are of a similar size, the greater flamingo has much paler plumage than the American flamingo.