Simplicity may be for the birds, but we complicated humans can appreciate its lessons. The greater flamingo is the largest bird, ranging from 3.5 to 5 feet tall and weighing between 4.4 and 8.8 pounds. Members of some species may have black bills and some black feathers. ![]() “Usually as humans we take the standing behavior for granted until we lose that ability,” she said. Flamingos have long legs, large curved bills, and plumage in shades ranging from white or gray to pink or orange. Ting, who studies the process of recovering movement after an injury. The birds might, she added, rely on gravity and some interaction between joints and ligaments to keep everything in place.īecause moving in and out of the one-legged stance appears to use little energy, flamingos could inspire improvements for robotics and powered prosthetics, said Dr. The birds showed that “it’s possible to maintain what we’d consider very difficult posture without having to activate muscles,” said Dr. The joints were easily unfolded also, suggesting that a flamingo can transition out of this position without much effort, either to switch legs, respond to wind or muddy water, or escape a threat. On two legs, or if the foot was not right below the body, the cadaver was far less stable. Rather than flopping over as expected, the bird settled into a stable, one-legged posture that stayed put even when the top of its body was tilted backward and forward. Chang stood the cadavers up in a one-legged position. Their ankles run half way up the length of their legs.The researchers used flamingo cadavers, which obviously lack active muscles, to see if muscles were necessary for this stability.ĭr. Many people assume that Flamingos don’t have knees but they actually do. They also allow them to easily swim in the waters. The webbed feet of a Flamingo allow them to stand in the muddy waters without losing their balance. What is also interesting is that the brain is smaller than the eye! All Flamingos feature yellow eyes regardless of what species they are. Many compare it to the way that the lid on a box opens up and then shuts tightly. The upper and lower portions of it fit together very tightly. The bill of the Flamingo has a very interesting design to it as well. When food sources become scarce, they will lose the bright red and orange coloring so that they are more of a pink or a shade of white in the most severe cases. The more of it they have the darker in color they will become. The coloring is based upon the Beta Carotene found in the food sources. Instead it is based upon the types of foods that they consume. The coloring of a Flamingo isn’t specific to a given species. It moves up and down hundreds of times per feeding. Their tongue is absolutely amazing and it is the centralized system for them to be able to feed adequately. They have to remove the salt water from their body and then drink fresh water to stay healthy and alive. They have a filtering system in their body so that food and water are taken in and then extracted. The body is designed to allow them to turn the head upside down to feed. There are a total of 19 vertebrae found in the next which is why they can have such a wide range of movement in it. The neck is very flexible so they can bend it downward to eat and even backwards to preen their feathers. ![]() The wings of the Flamingo are made up of delicate feathers that keep them warm, allow them to swim, and allow them to fly. You will also learn that they are well designed for their needs, not a freak of nature as some people at first assume. ![]() Learning more about their body design will likely give you a new understanding and appreciation of these animals. While there are several different species of the Flamingo, the overall anatomy of them are all the same. They also do fly, but mostly at night which is why most people don’t notice them. Flamingos don’t weigh more than 10 pounds. It is often assumed that they weigh too much to fly but that isn’t true. The Flamingo is a very tall bird, with some of them being up to 5 feet tall.
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