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5

Greater Flamingo (Phoenicopterus roseus) Size: 1.1-1.5 m; wing span 1.4-1.7 m Weight: 2-4 kg

Oman: Family Group 5 Family Group 5 Table Great White Egret Intermediate Egret Cattle Egret Little Egret Western Reef Heron Purple Heron Grey Heron Striated Heron Squacco Heron Indian Pond Heron Black-crowned Night Heron Little Bittern African Sacred Ibis Glossy Ibis Eurasian Spoonbill White Stork Greater Flamingo Lesser Flamingo Thumbnails page Classification table Index of bird names Oman birds home page

Similar species

Description     Classification     Distribution     Sightings     Photos     Breeding     Nest     Eggs     Behaviour     Food     Call/s

Physical description Click here for a physical description Greater Flamingos are large aquatic birds and the largest species of all flamingos. Large parts of the plumage are pinkish-white, except the wing coverts, which are red and the flight feathers, which are black. In-flight the crimson-red underwings with black flight feathers are conspicuous. The downward-kinked bill has a pink base and a black tip. The legs are light-pink, with darker pink joints and fully webbed feet. Juvenile and sub-adult Greater Flamingos have a greyish plumage for several years before moulting into adult plumage. Twitcher's tip As opposed to Lesser Flamingos, Greater Flamingos have a bill with a pink base.

Taxonomy, classification See Greater Flamingo at Wikipedia .

Range, habitat Click here for information on habitat and range The overall distribution of this species can be assessed, and specific locations where birds have been spotted can be found, based on individual sighting reports submitted by birdwatchers to ebird.org . The global distribution of the Greater Flamingo is available HERE . Greater Flamingos are the most widespread species of flamingo. They can be found in scattered locations along the coastlines of parts of Africa, the Middle East, Turkey, Arabia, Pakistan, India and the northern Mediterranean Sea. Greater Flamingos can sometimes be seen on the Arabian peninsula, including the North coast of Oman, during their migration between Africa and Asia. Greater Flamingos are usually found in estuaries, intertidal wetlands and lagoons with shallow salt water.

Sightings Click here for sighting information We have not seen Greater Flamingos in Oman yet, but in Europe. The photos shown below were taken in Africa.

Photos

ADULT

Sex unknown

Greater Flamingos in shallow water on the edge of a lake (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)

Part of a flock of Greater Flamingos during take-off (photo courtesy of D. Wilczynska)

Flock of Greater Flamingos in captivity (photo courtesy of S. Kirkby)

Call(s)/Song

For this species we have recorded the following call(s)/song. The interpretation of their meaning is our own; comments and suggestions for improvement are welcome.

grtflam_dw_20170315.m4a	(Canary Islands)	Contact calls(?)	© DW
grtflam_jp_20200720.m4a	(Portugal)	Various	© JP

More Greater Flamingo sound recordings are available at xeno-canto.org .

These pages are largely based on our own observations and those of our contributors. The structure of these bird pages is explained HERE. For more salient facts on any bird species please refer to a field guide.

Would you like to contribute photos or sound recordings to this site? If interested, please CLICK HERE. Credits to contributors are given HERE.

Disclaimer: Comments are always welcome. We give no guarantee that the information presented on these pages is always correct or up-to-date. External links are marked as such and we take no responsibility for the contents of external pages. All images on this site are protected by copyright & used by permission of the respective owners. If you wish to reproduce them or any of the material presented on this web site, please contact us: We hereby acknowledge the original custodians of the land which is described on these pages, including the Gomeroi/Gamilaraay people of the North-west Slopes and Plains of NSW, and the traditional owners of other lands and nations within this country. We acknowledge elders past, present and emerging. Sovereignty was never ceded.          Last updated: Fri, 22 March 2019, 6:21 +00:00