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This egg was laid on 20th July and hatched on 19th August, so took 31 days to incubate. The shallow pond area is an ideal location as the mud is the perfect building material.”īecky continued, “Both parents were hatched at Chester Zoo in July 2002, so are 17-years-old. But this did trigger the flock to build nests. One pair did lay an egg earlier in the summer, which sadly was not fertile. With a bigger flock size, we were in a stronger position to achieve breeding success. Our flock was very small until last summer, when five arrived from Slimbridge Wetland Centre. Keeper Becky Waite explained, “We are so excited to have a Caribbean Flamingo chick. Keepers decided to put the egg in an incubator, not knowing if it would hatch, but within days the egg started chirping! The chick hatched successfully on 19th August – it’s early days but, so far, it’s growing well on two-hourly feeds of a special ‘fish soup’ prepared by Keeper Becky.” However one egg was infertile and then the second pair stopped incubating about a week too early. Staff at Paradise Park are thrilled at the hatching of their first Caribbean Flamingo chick!ĭirector Alison Hales commented, “We love our flamingo group, and were delighted when two eggs were laid this summer. The flamingos’ famous pink plumage comes from pigments in their diet which is replicated in their special feed at the park. When adult, the continuously-moving beak acts as an efficient filter for food collection when water is pumped through the bristles of the mouth. In the wild, flamingos eat small crustaceans and other microscopic animals and plants, which are obtained by filter feeding.
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They are also significantly more able to deal with the cold than their Caribbean counterparts. They live 15-20 years in the wild, however in captivity, and safe from predators, they can reach ages of 70 years.Ĭhilean flamingos can survive at high altitude in the Andes Mountains. Fully grown they are around a-metre-and-a-half tall, and can weigh anywhere up to seven kgs. “This year’s success is likely to be down to a combination of factors including good weather during the egg hatching period, having a large colony and the fact so many of the eggs were fertile,” she added.įlamingos lay a single egg on top of a tall cone nest. “With the number of eggs still to hatch, it could be our best year to date and it’s particularly welcome as in 2019 heavy snow showers prevented the flamingos from sitting on any of their eggs. Keeper Lauren Hooper-Bow said: “We are extremely pleased with the high hatching success rate among the flamingos this year. ? Longleat's flock of flamboyant Chilean flamingos is experiencing a summer baby boom – with fourteen chicks already hatched and more on the way.Īll chicks are born with white plumage, which they keep for around three years, and a straight bill, which gradually droops down as they grow.