These big, bent-beaked birds are born with drab feathers. As they age, the flamingo’s plumage turns pink from the bacteria and a vitamin-rich pigment called beta-carotene in the bird’s shrimp-filled diet.
Flamingos’ colors can range from pale pink to crimson, depending on the amount of pigment present in the bird ‘s diet. Carotenoid levels in algae and crustaceans vary in different parts of the world, which is why Caribbean flamingos are usually bright red and orange, while flamingos of the drought-plagued Lake Nakuru in central Kenya tend to be a paler pink.
If a flamingo were to suddenly stop eating food containing carotenoids, its new feathers would begin grow in with a much more pale shade, with its reddish feathers eventually molting away.
Picture Credit : Google
