Birds
American flamingo
Phoenicopterus ruberConservation statusLeast Concern
DietBrine shrimp (tiny shrimp of salty water) and very small algae
Lifespan40-50 years
Size and weightUp to about 1.4 m tall
Bright pink. It stands in shallow, salty lagoons behind the sandy beaches.
Bent bill
What makes it specialThe pink comes from the brine shrimp it eats.
Surprising factFilters its food with its head upside down in the water, so its bill works upside down.
PopulationOnly a few hundred birds in the Galápagos, a small group cut off from all others.
The lagoons of Las Bachas and Rábida