Flamingos don't grow those brilliant pink feathers on their own. These birds are the elegant swimmers. Flamingos eat blue-green and red algae, diatoms, small insects, crustaceans, molluscs, and small fishes ; Standing in shallow water, flamingos lower their necks and tilt their heads slightly upside-down, allowing their bills to hang upside-down facing backward in the water Flamingos, on the other hand, have feathers that stay pink no matter which way you look at them. They'd have devolved into oddly-shaped white birds. However, there are exceptions. Special tough skin and scales on their legs prevent burns, and they can drink water at near boiling point to collect freshwater from springs and geysers at … For the flamingos this a bonus. Flamingos are are monogamous, meaning pairs stay together for life. Flamingos breed during April and May while gathered in groups on the extensive, warm, watery mudflats. Flamingos have a diet that consists of small marine organisms such as brine shrimp, tiny fish, fly larvae and plankton. Lesser flamingos are excellent swimmers. They also eat small fish, insects, red algae and diatoms. In East Africa, over one million lesser flamingos sometimes gather together, into the largest known flock among birds today. Flamingos filter-feed on brine shrimp and blue-green algae as well as insect larvae, small insects, mollusks and crustaceans making them omnivores. The flamingos with deep-keeled beaks have a relatively fine filter, and they are capable of filtering minute particles, like single-celled plants. Their bills are specially adapted to separate mud and silt from the food they eat, and are uniquely used upside-down. The same is true of most other blue and green birds, from blue jays to green parrots. When a flamingo spots potential dinner—favorite foods include shrimp, snails, and plantlike water organisms called algae—it plunges its head into the water, twists it upside down, and scoops the fish using its upper beak like a shovel. As I expect you are aware, animals don’t typically take on the color of the foods they eat. Flamingos are famous for their bright pink feathers, stilt-like legs, and S-shaped neck. The bird uses it webbed feet and long legs to stir up the water in shallow areas of lakes and rivers. They eat shrimp and blue-green algae to brighten themselves up. Flamingos with shallow-keeled beaks have a coarse filter, and they trap molluscs, crustaceans, small fish, and insects that are around an inch in length. A flamingo would probably not turn green if it were to eat grass. The diet of the flamingo is to blame for the flamingo… Flamingos also eat considerable quantities of blue-green algae. Alkaline lakes are the ideal places of flamingos. A popular part of a flamingo’s diet includes brine shrimp and blue-green algae. These flamingos mainly feed on algae and diatoms. The wingspan of flamingos measures about 152 cm (60 in). Standing on one leg is actually the most comfortable resting position for a flamingo. Flamingos do not have too many predators. At the beginning of the nesting season, flamingos perform spectacular group courtship displays of synchronized dancing, preening, neck stretching and honking. In captivity these birds can live up to the age of 50 years. The average flamingo lifespan is about 25 to 30 years. Flamingos like to flock together. Claim: Flamingos are pink because their diet is high in organisms like shrimp and red algae.