For the first time in the zoo’s history, flamingo chicks have hatched at the Nyíregyháza Zoo. Six little birds came out of their eggs, while ten more eggs are being incubated by female flamingos—the animal park in Nyíregyháza, Hungary, has revealed in their statement.
According to Zsuzsa Révészné Petró, the zoo’s head of education and public relations, both Chilean flamingos (Phoenicopterus chilensis) and greater flamingos (Phoenicopterus roseus) have successfully begun breeding inside the zoo’s giant World of Birds (Madárvilág) aviary. The two species live together as a single colony, reflecting their natural behaviour in the wild, where flamingos gather in large groups during the breeding season.
Their synchronized nesting habits are one of the reasons for this success.
Once breeding begins, pairs construct their nests, lay their eggs, and raise their young at roughly the same time, meaning most chicks hatch within a short period. Visitors can spot the species’ distinctive cone-shaped nests, which are built from mud and each contain a single egg. The male and female share incubation duties, taking turns keeping the egg warm for around 30 days.
Newly hatched flamingos look very different from the elegant pink birds they eventually become. The chicks are covered in soft grey or white down, have straight beaks instead of the adults’ curved bills, and are born with bright red legs.
During their first weeks of life, both parents feed them a highly nutritious secretion known as crop milk. Rich in pigments, this unique food is so demanding to produce that it can temporarily cause the parents’ vibrant pink feathers to fade. For added safety, the young birds later gather in large nursery groups, known as crèches, where they remain under the watchful eyes of the adult colony.
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