The Story
This American Flamingo (Phoenicopterus ruber) was at the Cali Zoo in Cali, Valle del Cauca, Colombia when I photographed it. The American Flamingo is native to the West Indies, northern South America, including the Galápagos Islands, and the Yucatán Peninsula. It prefers saline lagoons, mudflats and shallow brackish lakes. It is the only flamingo that naturally lives in North America. The Cali Zoo sits in the municipal forest on the banks of the Cali River and holds about 2,500 animals of 233 species. IUCN lists the American Flamingo as Least Concern, with an increasing population.
I made this frame with a Pentax K-1 and the HD Pentax-D FA 150-450mm f/4.5-5.6, at 1/1000 sec, f/5.6, ISO 800. The zoo runs education, recreation and research programs to help preserve Colombian biodiversity, and in 2016 it was accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.
©2022 Adam Rainoff Photographer
The bird
The American Flamingo (Phoenicopterus ruber) belongs to the family Phoenicopteridae (Flamingos) in the eBird/Clements taxonomy.
Source: eBird.org (opens in a new tab)
Conservation
Least Concern on the IUCN Red List (assessment published 2021), with the population trend listed as increasing. Source: IUCN Red List