Hundreds of thousands of three foot flamingos live around East Africa’s alkaline soda lakes. Of the five species of this hot pink bird these three footers are the smallest. The volcanic soil beneath these lakes leaches out bicarbonate of soda. These warm lakes are the perfect environment for the growth of spirulina algae which is the staple of these little flamingos.
Flamingos have a unique way of scooping up this algae. They invert their head so that the bottom of the bill is facing the sky. By moving its head from side to side with its beak open he is able to pump water in his beak using his thick tongue. The algae is then extracted by using hair-like projections. The excess water is pushed out and feeding has been completed. 35 tons a day of this algae can be eaten by a flock of 100,000 little flamingos. The flamingos determine when there is not enough algae to sustain them. When this happens the sky is dotted in pink as they fly to the next fertile lake.
The lakes are inhospitable to fish and have little vegetation because its fresh water percolates out at 150 degrees Fahrenheit. Because there is less competition for resources the flamingo population in this area soars to as many as four million.
Because there aren’t any fish in these lakes, the fish eagle has had to adapt to his environment by preying on flamingos. Storks and jackals also prey on these pink birds.
