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Andean Flamingo | Phoenicoparrus andinus
Andesflamingo | Flamenco andino | Flamingo-dos-andes
The Andean Flamingo is the largest of the three flamingos of the high Andes and the only flamingo with yellow legs. It lives on the salt lakes of the altiplano, often together with Chilean Flamingo and James's Flamingo. It is the rarest of the three and breeds on only a few lakes.
Voice
Nasal, honking calls; flocks give a continuous gabbling, especially when taking off and at the colony.
Recording: Guilherme de Melo Becher — CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 · xeno-canto
Identification
102–110 cm. The plumage is pale pink, with a deeper wine-pink head, neck and breast. On a standing bird the black secondaries and tertials form a striking black triangle at the rear of the body. The bill is pale yellow at the base and black on the outer half. The legs are yellow, and the foot lacks a hind toe. In flight the flight feathers are black. The sexes are alike; juveniles are grey with streaked upperparts.
Confusion species
Chilean Flamingo Phoenicopterus chilensis has grey legs with pink 'knees' and feet, a pale bill with a black tip, and shows little black at rest. James's Flamingo Phoenicoparrus jamesi is smaller and shorter-necked, with a bright yellow bill with a small black tip, red legs and crimson streaks on the back, but no black triangle at rest.
Habitat
Salt and brackish lakes and lagoons on the altiplano, at roughly 3500 to 4500 m. It feeds in fairly deep water, filtering diatoms and other microscopic food from the water and mud with its head upside down. It breeds in dense colonies on salt flats and mudbanks, with a nest of heaped-up mud.
Where the bird is most at home, classified by the vegetation units of the Andes and the west coast.
Range and movements
On the altiplano of southern Peru, mainly in the regions of Arequipa, Moquegua, Tacna and Puno, and of south-western Bolivia, where the main lakes and breeding sites lie. Absent from Colombia, Ecuador and the Galápagos. Outside the guide area in northern Chile and north-western Argentina; in winter birds also appear on lower lakes.
- Resident
- dark = core range, pale = thinly spread
How and when to look
The coloured lagoons of south-western Bolivia, such as Laguna Colorada, often hold all three Andean flamingos side by side. In southern Peru the species can be seen on the lagoons of the Salinas y Aguada Blanca reserve near Arequipa.
Conservation status
Vulnerable. Breeding success varies greatly from year to year. Threats include mining and the pumping of water from the lakes and groundwater, egg collecting and disturbance of colonies.
Scientific name
Phoenicoparrus andinus | (Philippi, 1854)
Philippi described the species in 1854 as Phoenicopterus andinus; because it was later moved to another genus, the author and year stand in brackets. The genus Phoenicoparrus was introduced in 1856 by Bonaparte. The genus name combines Greek phoinix, 'crimson', with Latin parra, an unidentified bird of omen. The species name means 'of the Andes'; it refers to that mountain range, not necessarily the type locality. The specimen the first description was based on came from Altos de Pingopingo, Antofagasta, Chile.